The Seer's Prophecies
by Music Muse
Summary: After a terrible summer, Harry ends up in the hospital. When he's thrown into a world of confusion, can some classmates and an odd hospital staff help him through this hard time? Pre-H/D.
1. Author's note!

This is not a new chapter. Sorry, but I will post a new one in a few days. Instead, I have created a:  
  
POLL!!!!!!!!!  
  
It won't be for the main pairing, as that is already decided to be Harry/Draco, but I do need some help in deciding these four people's pairings:  
  
Ari/Sirius  
  
Or  
  
Remus/Sirius  
  
Or  
  
Severus/Remus  
  
Or I'll just leave Remus by himself. So please vote on this. Also, I have read many comments about the beginning of the story being.....well, bad or not very enjoyable. First I would like to say I'm sorry; then I would like to add that the story gets better. Or so I hope because I like it. Then again, I did like the beginning. And this is only one part of a series. The rest will be an AU.  
  
That's all. Thanks to all my wonderful reviewers! I think I forgot to thank you all last chapter. 


	2. Default Chapter

Chapter One: Waking up  
  
  
  
  
  
"What happened here?" A voice said. He supposed it was loud but it sounded muddled and miles away.  
  
"Fifteen year old male with multiple stab wounds to the torso. Has been unconsciousness for an unknown period of time possibly because of a head trauma on the lower portion of the back of his head. Seems to be suffering from the aftereffects of the Cruciatius Curse." Another voice called to answer the first. The words were just as muddled as before, if not more so. His eyelids felt so heavy. A stream of golden light flooded one eye, then the other. He would just close his eyes and sleep for a little bit. Just a little.  
  
"Wasn't there a woman who arrived with him?"  
  
"She was a D.O.A." Not being able to understand the doctor lingo, he closed his eyes hoping sleep would eliminate the dull throbbing in his head.  
  
****** Opening his eyes the next morning seemed to be the hardest thing he ever faced. Was it always this hard to open his eyelids? But the moment he actually managed this victory, albeit a small one, he immediately slammed them closed again as bright light flooded his eyes, dilating his pupils until they seemed to overshadow the green. Cracking them open slightly, he was greeted with a scene that he knew as well as the back of his hand. The bright lights, a surreal amount of whiteness and a small tray table to his side. Yep, he was in a hospital. Not Hogwarts' hospital but still some kind of health care facility.  
  
"Damn." Was all he said as pulled the covers over his head to go back to sleep before his brain woke up and reminded him why he was in the hospital in the first place. But sleep wouldn't come. Instead images of a broken and bloody body filled his mind and danced behind his closed eyelids. It was obvious that sleep wasn't going to help him so this called for other tactics. Pushing back the covers with more force then the task called for, he was about to move out of a bed when a sharp pain shot across his left side. Glancing down, he saw a tan bandage wrapped snuggly around his ribs.  
  
Groaning, he carefully heaved himself from the bed. Clutching his side and half-heartedly muttering obscenities, he struggled to get to a small table that was opposite of the door and near his window. His legs could barely hold his weight as he gripped the edge of his bed until his knuckles drained of blood and turned white. After pausing the few moments to steady himself, he tried once more to make it to the table only to feel bile rise in his throat before dashing off to a small bathroom in the room. For around ten minutes, he sprawled over the toilet; dry heaving with occasional blood mixed into it. When he was finished, he glanced up at mirror to study his reflection.  
  
He looked like shit. Dark circles lined his eyes, which contrasted sharply with the pale, almost translucent skin. His dark, messy hair was still as uncontrollable as ever but now lay matted on his forehead, which was covered with a like film of sweat. His once vibrant green eyes had dulled slightly in color and a small stream of saliva mingled with blood ran past his chapped lips before hitting the white porcelain sink. Wiping his lip and chin, he bent cupped his hand to gather the water and gurgled it around his mouth to rid it of the coppery taste of blood and the still present taste of bile. Stepping back out of the bathroom, he tried to make it to the little table across the room, gripping on to objects near by as if when he let go, he'd fall away from the world. Finally reaching the table, he lowered himself into a light blue leather chair with a strait back so relaxing was nearly impossible. Opening the drawer of the table he peered in at the contents. Four things occupied the draw: A copy of 'Witches Weekly' complete with a smiling Lockhart look-a-like, a pencil, a pad of paper and the Bible. Deciding it was best to read something, he held up the magazine in one hand and the Bible in the other.  
  
"Decisions, decisions." He muttered sarcastically before settling back into bed, the Bible in hand.  
  
Fifteen minutes later, a sharp knock was heard at the door. It seemed pointless, really, as the doctor waited all of two seconds before swiftly opening the door and stepping inside.  
  
The doctor, well, he assumed it was a doctor, seemed rather young. Probably around 25, Harry reasoned. He had dark tanned skin with a head full of black thick hair that stayed perfectly in place, a luxury Harry had never known. His eyes were a rich brown and they reflected the smile on his lip that showed off his perfectly straight white teeth. He found himself feeling a little self-conscious.  
  
"Hello, Harry. I may call you Harry?" He asked cheerfully. Inwardly, Harry groaned. That doctor was way too cheery this early .at 2:30 in the afternoon. Never mind. Remembering the doctor's question, he nodded silently and waited for him to continue. "I'm Doctor Johansson and I'll be your doctor here."  
  
Harry meant to ask where here was but a sound refused to come out. His throat ached from lack of use and cracked as he tried to form words.  
  
"Water?" Dr. Johansson asked, handing over a glass.  
  
Gulping it down, he tried once again. "Where am I?"  
  
"St. Mungo's. Anymore questions?" Shaking his head 'no', the doctor continued, "It seems the person or persons who injured you did quite a number. You suffered from eight stab wounds: one on your right shoulder, one on your right lung, two in your intestines, one in your left kidney, one to your stomach, one on your left thigh and one on your right arm. You have three broken ribs, a slight concussion; we already healed your broken femur and broken ulna and radius. A total of thirty-three bruises were found on your body along with several shallow cuts. One of the Unforgivable Curses was used on you, possibly multiple times and a poison was injected in to you from the knife that gave you these wounds. A serious amount of blood was lost but you seem to be recovering fine now." Through the whole speech, Harry watched his face change. The smile slowly disappeared, replaced with his lips pursing. His eyebrows knitted together and his eyes shone with compassion and pity for Harry.  
  
Speaking quietly, Harry contemplated everything the doctor had said. No one should have survived the attack he just described, but then again, with Harry, death and Harry Potter became opposites.  
  
"I shouldn't have survived that attack. It's impossible." Harry spoke quietly. Admitting it too loud meant that he really had cheated death again while another innocent person died.  
  
"Well, miracles happen every day." The doctor began, smiling with a fake brightness.  
  
"Don't lie."  
  
Looking defeated, the doctor began again in a more monotone voice. "In my medical opinion if you had been bathed in phoenix tears even a minute after you received the injuries, you wouldn't have been saved. You should get some rest now." Standing up to leave, he had just reached the doorknob when Harry called to him.  
  
"And Dorothy Figg? What of her?" He knew the answer, they both did, but Harry needed it in words to make his nightmare real.  
  
"Dorothy Figg was found at the scene already dead. There was nothing we could have done."  
  
"I know." Harry said silently, in barely a whisper. At the doctor's odd look he explained. Taking a sharp breath, he began silently. "I watched them torture her and then I watched them kill her. But I needed to know." Johansson nodded his head mutely before speaking.  
  
"I didn't want to mention it before but there have been aurors, the media and some guests swarming the hospital for the past two weeks."  
  
"Two weeks?!"  
  
"Yes, would you like me to send anyone in? That is if you're up to visitors."  
  
"I guess. Could you send in an adult first? I have a feeling that all of these are not happy visits."  
  
"Of course." He nodded his head before opening the doors and getting ready to leave.  
  
"Thank you." Harry called, giving a grateful smile that was returned warmly.  
  
******** Stepping out into the waiting room area, Dr. Johansson was not surprised to see it over flowing with witches and wizards; some reading, most of the adults sipping coffees, a few dabbing their red and swollen eyes with napkins, a few playing wizards chess of watching. But no talking. Not one person spoke-all lost with their own grief but finding different ways to express it. Not even when one of the boys playing chess put the other boy into checkmate, he just nodded and it was understood.  
  
"Excuse me. Who are the people waiting for Mr. Potter?" At once, twenty or so people jumped to their feet and turned their heads in his direction.  
  
At once, he was bombarded with questions.  
  
"What's wrong?"  
  
"Is he alright?"  
  
"Does he need anything?"  
  
"Is the condition worse?"  
  
"Has he woken up?"  
  
"Did he say anything?"  
  
"Silence!" A voice commanded from the back. At once, everybody closed his or her mouths towards the speaker. "Thank you. Now Dr. Johansson has there been any change?"  
  
"Yes, Professor Dumbledore. He just woke up and has agreed to take visitors but has requested the adults. He said something about knowing that some of your visits weren't, and I quote, 'happy ones'." All of the faces looked grave as they glance around at each other.  
  
"Very well. I assume that's my cue to go. Sirius would you like to come?" Dumbledore asked. If the doctor was surprised, he didn't show it, but if anybody looked close enough, under his jacket and above the left breast was the reason. A small gold pin with a phoenix on it sat nestled almost behind his name badge.  
  
"I'm coming too." A voice called from behind. A young woman in her middle thirties with short, slightly wavy light brown hair stepped forward. Her brown eyes were rimmed with redness like the rest of them, though she had been crying for another reason in addition to the one at hand.  
  
"Are you sure, Arabella?"  
  
"My visit also borders on the not happy side. My job tells me to go with you two." Both men nodded their heads before following the doctor down the hall and into the room.  
  
"Hello Harry." Dumbledore greeted. Sirius pushed past him and flung his arms around his godson, holding him tightly until it seemed that oxygen might be a problem.  
  
"Sirius, Ari, Dumbledore." He nodded to all three, waiting for them to continue.  
  
"How are you feeling?" Sirius asked finally, his voice choked up with emotion.  
  
Rolling his eyes at the question, Harry asked calmly, "Like I've been stabbed eight time, have three broken ribs, thirty-three bruises, numerous cuts, and three newly healed bones. I'm just peachy." The twinkle that should have been shown in his eyes was absent in the dull eyes. Looking over at Ari, pained filled his eyes as he softly added, "I'm sorry about your mother." Ari nodded her head, her eyes filling with tears as she bit her trembling lip. An uncomfortable silence fell over the group. "So, who's out there anyway?"  
  
"Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Ron, all the Weasleys in fact, Hermione and her parents, Remus, Snape stopped by with McGonagall about an hour ago, Neville Longbottom was here for a while but then left saying he had other business here, Hagrid hasn't left the waiting room for more than an hour, Mrs. Dursley came here to check up but left quickly enough." Sirius said, counting the people off on his fingers.  
  
"Okay." Turning to Dumbledore, his face became harder, his eyes like green chips of marble, "I want to know why I keep being attacked, Professor. I don't need anymore of that 'now's not the time, you'll find out when you're older' bullshit." All three adults flinched slightly at his words, so different sounding from the boy at Hogwarts last year. Too much death, too much blood, too many years of childhood lost. "I'm not at Hogwarts now but that doesn't stop him from attacking me. There must be something you're not telling me."  
  
"Are you sure you're ready to hear it? I don't want to modify your memory if it is too hard to handle." Dumbledore asked cautiously.  
  
"I'm ready."  
  
Taking a deep breath, with his eyes never leaving Harry's, he began. "About thirty five years ago, a young woman, a muggle, by the name of Sarah Evans had a short affair with Tom Riddle with resulted in the birth of a child." Harry sucked in a breath at this point, he knew what was coming. "Her husband forgave her and adopted the child as his own. A few months later, a baby girl was born, named Lily Evans." Here, Dumbledore paused, waiting for Harry's reaction.  
  
Trying to keep his emotions in-check, Harry slowly breathed out a response, "And no one found it important to tell me this?"  
  
"We didn't think it was time to tell you." Dumbledore said quietly, not daring to look at Harry's blazing green eyes.  
  
"When were you going to tell me?" Harry yelled, trying to get up but being forced into bed by Ari and Sirius. "Huh? When one of us finally killed each other? Right before we prepare to battle?" Adopting Dumbledore's voice he quickly mimicked a possible conversation. " 'Oh, by the way Mr. Potter, you're supposed to kill your only living magic relative. Fight a good fight.'" He quickly glared at him before pushing himself back into the pillow.  
  
"Wait." Sirius protested. "I'm a little confused. Why do you need to kill your grandfather?"  
  
"Does an evil, psychotic muggle killer out for my blood make you want to keep him alive?"  
  
"When has this Tom Riddle guy done any of this?"  
  
"Tom Riddle also known as Voldemort."  
  
"Then why did Dumbledore call him Tom Riddle?"  
  
"Do you seriously think his parents named him Voldemort?" Harry questioned with a slight scowl on his face.  
  
Blushing scarlet, Sirius sat back down and waved a hand, signaling for Dumbledore to continue his story.  
  
"After Lily was born, Tom Riddle wanted to keep the child for himself as it was his only heir, Slytherin's only heir. When he was refused he threatened Sarah with her and her husband's life but still she refused."  
  
"Did he kill them?" Harry asked.  
  
"Not then. If he had murdered them, then all of the Death Eaters would have known of his affair with a muggle."  
  
Harry nodded silently going over everything he had heard before another thought struck him. "Why did he want to kill my father then?"  
  
"The defeat of Voldemort lies is a prophecy along with the Potters, the last in the line of Gryffindor and Slytherin. He was aware of the prophecy and knew it ended it the Gryffindor's favor. When I say aware, though, it does not mean he knew any of the details-just the outcome. I believe I'm the only one with the complete prophecy."  
  
"How does it go?"  
  
"I'm not sure, as it wasn't complete until a few years ago and has still been unable to be deciphered. Around a thousand years ago, the first seer in this prophecy predicted one part of it. A hundred years past and it was predicted again with another part. And so on. Professor Trelawney predicted the last one about ten years ago. I could send it to you if you'd like." Harry nodded at this. "I think that's about all. I should wait until we have that prophecy. Any questions?" He glanced around the room at Ari and Sirius who were both expressing different degrees of shock.  
  
"This all ends with me." Harry asked, looking up at Dumbledore, "Right? Technically I'm both the last descendent of Gryffindor and Slytherin and unless I go schizophrenic and start waging a battle with myself then that means I need to battle Voldemort to fulfill the prophecy."  
  
"Yes but prophecies are inexact and often misinterpreted differently and often don't result in anything." Dumbledore added.  
  
"Predicted around ten times? No, this is definitely going to happen. I have another question though. Why didn't Voldemort just try and turn me evil before or after he killed my parents?"  
  
"He did try and find you when you were first born. Lily refused to let him have anything to do with you and, to put it lightly, he wasn't very happy. When you were born, various enchantments were cast on you to keep you safe from Voldemort until you reached the age of 16 and could decide your own side. Since he could not use you he decided just to kill you and insure he'd live forever."  
  
"Any more hidden information for me? No long-lost siblings, no terminal diseases?"  
  
"No, though there is something I would like to talk to you about when you look over the prophecy." Dumbledore turned as if to leave but instead pivoted to face Harry, "Are you ready to talk about the attack?"  
  
"Not yet. Soon." Harry reassured as Dumbledore gave a small smile and stepped out.  
  
"You don't have to tell us anything until you're ready." Sirius said, looking to Ari for support, but when none was given he elbowed her in the stomach.  
  
"Of course."  
  
"Ari, I know you need the closure and I know it's your job to find out what happened but I'm not ready." Harry said, looking away at the window and in a small voice added, "And I don't know if I ever will be." He swiveled his head back and looked straight into her eyes. "If you really need to know then I can try a pensieve."  
  
"I would appreciate it but it isn't necessary." Harry could see right through her lie and sighed before telling her he would anyway.  
  
"I'll need a pensieve." He added as an afterthought before stifling a fake yawn. "Don't bother sending anyone else in. I'm just going to go to bed. Sirius, could you send me my school stuff? Send both by Hedwig." Sirius looked a little stunned but agreed. "See you guys later." He muttered as he rolled on his side, back to them.  
  
"Harry? Is there something wrong? It looks like you're not telling us something." Sirius stated, barely registering Harry's eyes widen slightly or his hand pressing into his arm.  
  
Giving a nervous smile he said curtly, "No, nothing."  
  
"Okay then. Bye Harry." The barely audible click of the door echoed through the small room and had released a breath he didn't know he was holding.  
  
Slowly rolling up his left sleeve, he glanced at the picture engraved on his skin. The Dark Mark. Its outline was solid black and he could feel the heat rushing off it in waves, even with his pajama sleeve down.  
  
"Nothing more than another scar to be added to my collection." He whispered to himself.  
  
******  
  
Authors Notes:  
  
If anybody's wondering, D.O.A in the first paragraph or little section means dead on arrival-so it's not so good for her.  
  
Okay that's all for now. Just for the record, I own nothing except for Dorothy Figg because I created her personality.  
  
Just to note-Harry gets a little depressed but I will not spend the whole fic talking about his depression, though I might dwell in it for a little bit. There will be self-mutilation in the story but only for a few paragraphs. 


	3. Breaking the Facade

Okay-Chapter One is posted and I only got two reviews so please, please review! To answer some questions in the review:  
  
I don't think I'll make it a slash fic unless I get a lot of reviews requesting it-then I might consider it because it won't affect my story for a while.  
  
Also, I don't think Harry will go undercover and make people think he's evil but he definitely will be dealing with his darker side, though this fic is not going to be all about his problems.  
  
I think I should warn you now that I will be introducing a female character that is Harry's age-but it is not, I repeat, not, a Mary-Sue. She's there because it is going to help tie my story together and bring some humor about.  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize except Dorothy Figg-but I don't own her last name. I also own Dr. Johansson. Now on with the story!  
  
  
  
Chapter Two: Breaking the Façade.  
  
  
  
The rest of the afternoon and evening left Harry to finally think about everything.  
  
For the first time since he came to Hogwarts, he hated Albus Dumbledore. How dare he kept this from him. Of course the logical part of Harry's brain would have probably told him that it was a good idea because he might not have been able to handle it when he was in his first year. Of course, in Harry's mind, little Logical Harry had been tied up and gagged by Evil Harry who had little red horns and was currently dancing around and taunting Logical Harry.  
  
And Ari! Sure, Harry could understand her being upset. After all, he himself had lost both parents, although he hadn't known them as well as Ari, it still hurt. That still didn't give her a right to even ask him to explain everything that happened right when he woke up from a two-week coma.  
  
He sighed to himself as he ran a hand through his hair. It just seemed that every person in the wizard world was expecting him to be the person they had molded in their minds.  
  
First there was the Hero. The brave warrior who would save their world from Voldemort time and time again until he was defeated. Brave, strong-a true Gryffindor. But all these battles were won on luck. He wasn't such a powerful wizard. He also wasn't such a true Gryffindor, now that he knew he had Slytherin blood running through his veins. Ironically, all his second year he had denied being Slytherin's heir and now almost three years later he was admitting the truth to himself. He was as much a Slytherin as a Gryffindor.  
  
Or some saw him as the little orphan. Poor, defenseless Harry Potter. A boy that needs to be protected from the bad things with love and affection. Mrs. Weasley fell into this category with many other females. He had once remembered Mrs. Weasley calling him a 'trooper' and how he was so 'courageous'. She had no idea that during this summer this 'trooper' had given up and had been drowning in despair and self-pity.  
  
About a week into summer vacation Harry had been preparing dinner in an almost mechanical fashion. Slice this, think about Cedric, chop those, think about Cedric, split these, and think about Cedric seemed to be the normal pattern.  
  
Still using his the knife, his mind drifted back to the cemetery, replaying the actions over and over in his head.  
  
'Kill the spare.' The words echoed in his head. I shouldn't have let him die. I killed him. Emotions were jumbled: Guilt, sorrow, anger, and confusion-all swimming around in his head until.  
  
A bitter sting brought him out of his memories as he looked at his left hand, which produced a steady stream of blood from an inch long cut running across the back of his hand. After getting over the shock of the cut a thought struck him. No more emotions were swirling around and conflicting in his head. He felt pleasantly calm as his eyes dropped to the blade that was stained with his blood. A bitter smile crept across his face as he got a clean knife and finished making dinner. Mrs. Dursley was too preoccupied with the neighbors to notice one of her knives had gone missing.  
  
For the first night after he left the hospital wing, he slept a dreamless sleep. Every day the memories grew worse and worse and soon he had scars littering his ankles, thighs and arms. Each day he watched his life's essence spiral down a drain before falling into an exhausted sleep, induced by the loss of blood. Each cut was deep enough to leave a scar, a visible trace of his guilt. One day he went too far.  
  
Do the yard work for his relatives was common enough. Today, however instead of cutting the grass or working on the flowerbed, he was assigned the hedges. Thick, luscious and dark, almost identical to those in the maze and when he closed his eyes, he could see the tall hedges towering over him, hear the crowd behind him and feel the jagged edge of the giant spider slice into his thigh. Feeling the dark liquid seep through his fingers had awaken him for his memory and directed him to his leg which was pumping out blood, staining his jeans and the splattering the ground and already soiled hedge clippers that he had held in his hand moments before. Unable to stand up, he fell on his knees and the last thing he saw before he blacked out was a worried Mrs. Figg running over to him.  
  
The next month and a half was a blur. He stayed at the Mrs. Figg's and the Dursleys were none the wiser about why he left. Though he was away from his relatives, the summer barely picked up. Several sessions of therapy and antidepressant drugs were almost everyday occurrences. He was sure that the therapy and the meds wouldn't have done anything if it had not been for Dorothy Figg. The elderly woman had accepted him, no questions asked. She saw both the light sides and the darker parts that no one had dared penetrated before her. With her he could just be. Everything she did for him was for his benefit with no alternative motives. He felt truly at peace even when his life had reached the hectic extremes. And then she had died-because of him. The list he had was growing. First Quirrell, then Cedric and now Mrs. Figg. He could probably add Lily Potter and Voldemort to it as well.  
  
'What a day to be off antidepressants.' He thought glumly as he sank deeper into the pillows. A door creaking open made him turn his head just in time to see the doctor poke his head in.  
  
"Hello Harry. Are you feeling okay?" He asked while he raised a wand and muttered a couple of words causing a yellowish beam shoot out of his wand and hover above Harry before forming some type of chart about him. He supposed it was his vitals or something.  
  
Grabbing a notepad in his white wizard robes-which, to Harry, looked suspiciously like a lab coat-he began to jot notes down. He could never figure out why doctors wore white when it was just going to get messed up easily.  
  
"So you're on antidepressants?" He asked, not looking up from his notebook. Harry started to nod but realize this did no good, as the doctor was not watching his movements.  
  
"Yes. Why?"  
  
"Just checking. They are the muggle kind, right?"  
  
"Yeah-does it make a difference?"  
  
"Not really, but I would prefer it if they were the muggle kind over wizard." He said as he finished jotting down notes and stuffed his notepad back into his pocket.  
  
Scrunching up his forehead so little wrinkles settled over his features. "Why exactly?"  
  
"Well right now you're on a magical overload."  
  
"A magical what?"  
  
"Overload. You have too much magical energy pent up inside you."  
  
"How can that happen?"  
  
"When any spell or curse is used, the caster loses a bit of magical energy. The amount varies with the strength of the enchantment. Anyway, the energy leaves the caster and enters the target and the target gains some of the magical energy."  
  
"Isn't magical energy good?"  
  
"Not really." Dr. Johansson explained, trying to find the right words to describe it. "You can't bend the magic to your will so the energy can't be used except in the form the caster wanted."  
  
"Then how do I get rid of it?"  
  
"The magic is being stored in your body and eventually it'll detox itself. If it's a small amount, like practicing a charm on someone, then the wizard won't even feel the magic getting rid of itself."  
  
"Sounds lovely." Harry muttered sarcastically.  
  
"Isn't it? I'll tell you this though-you're in for a rough ride. Not only were extremely powerful curses used on you, but also they contain a lot of dark magic. It's going to be hell when your body starts to cleanse itself."  
  
"Aren't you supposed to be reassuring me that I'll be fine?" Harry asked wryly.  
  
"Okay, how about this: It's going to hurt like hell but I think you'll pull through." Dr. Johansson said as he clapped a hand over Harry's shoulder in a mock supportive attitude.  
  
"Oh, you're hilarious. What ever made you decide not to be a comedian?" Harry said as he scowled at the doctor.  
  
"I like bothering the patients. It's good cheap entertainment. Do you need anything else?" He asked as he prepared to leave. "Oh, by the way, we're putting you back on your medicine."  
  
"I just have a question. Is the whole detoxing thing the reason some of my injuries aren't healed magically?"  
  
"Yep. I'll send someone in to check up on you later. For the time being just enjoy yourself."  
  
"Of course. I could read about how I have sinned in the Bible or I could read about how to shape up my ass to get my man."  
  
"Hey! Those tips in 'Witches Weekly' work!"  
  
"I think my ass is in fine shape. Thank you very much." Harry was thinking about voicing the concerns that had been bothering him all afternoon. Did the doctor see the Dark Mark? Deciding just to ask so his mind was at ease he quickly asked, "Were there any unusual marks on my body?"  
  
Looking at Harry curiously he shook his head 'no'. "Why, have you noticed something? The doctors weren't exactly looking for marks when you came in."  
  
"No, just wondering. I'll see you later." Harry mumbled as he rolled on his side, mimicking the motion he had done when Sirius left.  
  
"Okay. Sleep well." With that, he turned and left.  
  
*******  
  
Harry had around three hours to himself that evening. For about two and a half, he did read the Bible but he ended up feeling slightly guilty so he stuffed the book in the drawer. Reaching back into the drawer, he pulled out a pencil and 'Witches Weekly' and began to draw mustaches and beards or just try and disfigure some of the picture's faces. Currently about half of the pictures were scowling at him, not at all impressed with his, what he thought was creative, doodles. The other half were hiding in the pictures, afraid something would happen to them.  
  
Sighing, he tossed the magazine aside. There were no more pictures to be drawn on and it wasn't like he was actually going to read the thing. He stashed the magazine in the drawer and pulled out a pad of paper. He settled back into bed and stared at the blank sheets of paper.  
  
And that was all he did for a few minutes. Even drawing brought back memories of this summer.  
  
He had loved drawing and was quite good at it too. For him it was a quiet escape, sketching his emotions on paper by capturing the same feeling in another. Dorothy had noticed his sketchpad and dragged him off to an art class for about a week that summer. It had been a lot of fun while it lasted.  
  
So closing his eyes for a minute, he pressed the pencil against the paper and let his mind's eye bring an image forward. His pencil swept across the paper without him even knowing what he was drawing. Opening his eyes again, Harry was greeted with the smile of Dorothy. The small grin with permanent laugh lines smiled back up at him. Every one of her features stored in his mind: the wrinkles, the small scar resting above her lip, the vibrant twinkle in her eye that made her seem years younger.  
  
He glared at the paper and ripped the sheet of the pad, prepared to crumple it and throw it to the floor. He just couldn't smash the paper. Instead, he guided his pencil against the paper to finish the sketch. In about fifteen minutes, Dorothy was there again; alive in his picture. Placing it on the tray table in front of him he sighed as he looked at it.  
  
"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Harry whispered before burring his face in a pillow. And he cried. For the first time in seven years, he cried. He cried for Cedric who didn't get to live, for Mrs. Figg who deserved life, his parents who died for him, Sirius who lost thirteen years of his life for trying to save his parents, for anybody who had been a victim of Voldemort's. And he cried for himself. For Harry Potter who lost anyone who got close to him and in Voldemort's way. He wept until there were no tears left and all he could do was take shallow shaky breaths. Emotionally and physically exhausted, he curled up into a ball and fell asleep. He failed to notice Hedwig fly into the open window a few minutes later and drop off two small parcels before landing on the headboard of Harry's bed and falling asleep too.  
  
When Harry awoke, the sky outside the window was a dark velvety blue. Glancing at the clock near his bed he read that it was around eleven thirty. After stretching his back a bit, he padded across the room to the door and out into the hallway. This hospital wasn't much different from a muggle hospital, although Harry had only been to a muggle hospital once or twice.  
  
The first time was when Harry was seven and Dudley had been teasing him about something. Before he knew it, his cousin had pushed him down the stairs and he ended up with a split lip, a gash on the back of his head and a sprained wrist. The Dursleys' had most definitely not been happy, blaming Harry for falling down the stairs and ruining their evening. Like he wanted to fall down the stairs, Harry thought as he snorted at the memory.  
  
The second time had been when he was ten and Dudley was in the middle of a tantrum. Normally, he would take all of his angry and frustration out on Harry but knowing this, Harry made himself scarce and hid in the back yard. His cousin finally gave up and began throwing things out his window. Before he knew what happened, his skull had been bashed with a computer. The Dursleys had only tolerated taking him to the hospital, because he had after all saved the computer from being smashed.  
  
He listened to the quiet smacking of flesh against the against the freezing tile floor. The hall lights were dimmed and no one was visible. Taking a left and watching the door of his room disappear; he came to the nurses' station where a lone nurse sat at a desk filing her nails and glancing down the hallways occasionally.  
  
"Excuse me" Harry asked quietly as he stepped out of the shadows and into the brighter part of the hospital.  
  
Startled, the woman jumped in her seat and placed a hand over her chest, trying to calm herself down.  
  
"Oh! Sorry, I didn't hear you? Is there anything wrong Mr. Potter?"  
  
"No, I just have a favor to ask." Ten minutes later, he waved goodbye to the nurse who waved back cheerily but still eyed him curiously. Right before he was about to head back to his room, he saw a small figure creep along the hallway and dash through a pair of doors.  
  
Entering his room and grabbing his wand, Harry followed the same path the stranger took. He burst through the doors and arrived just in time to see the shadowy figure fly through an open door. Picking up his pace, Harry ran to catch up with whoever it was.  
  
'This is ridiculous!' Harry thought as he followed a corridor into a set of double doors that were swinging back and forth in the shadow person's wake. Glancing up at the sign above the doors, he could barely make out the words 'Mental Ward.'  
  
'Great. I guess I belong here. I'm chasing a mysterious shadow person through out the hospital in the middle of the night-in my pajamas.' Harry sighed at these thoughts but stopped immediately when he noticed another door close quietly on his left.  
  
Harry gripped his wand tightly, his palms were sweaty and his hands trembled. Seeing as the door was not completely closed, he pushed the door open a little more and watched in the dark room as the small shadowy figure walk cautiously to the bed. A small, pudgy hand reached out and turned on a light near the bed.  
  
The light shone over the boy's features and Harry gasped in surprise, dropping his wand in shock. The sharp click of the wood against the floor alerted the other boy, causing him to redirect his gaze towards Harry.  
  
"Harry."  
  
***********  
  
That's the end for now but I will continue! Please review or I'll be unhappy and forget to post for a while.  
  
I know it's a cliffhanger but I'll give you a hint: it is a good person-no evilness abounds. 


	4. Late night conversations

"Harry."  
  
"Hello Neville." God, this is awkward, Harry thought as he looked between the door and Neville.  
  
Standing up, Neville began staring at his shoes as he shyly bit his bottom lip.  
  
"What are you doing here?" He finally asked.  
  
"I saw you moving in the hallway and I followed you." Harry replied simply, taking this chance to glance around the room.  
  
It was slightly smaller than Harry's room and despite the light turned on it was fairly dark. There was a chair next to the bed that looked well worn. For all appearances, it seemed to be a normal hospital room, except for the patient in it-a woman, probably around her middle thirties seemed to be sleeping peacefully. The thick leather bands, binding her by her arms, legs, and midriff to the bed, destroyed this normalcy.  
  
"I suppose I'll go." Harry said slowly, turning around and heading towards the door.  
  
Neville's shaky voice called after him, "Wait!" Spinning around, Harry watched as Neville sighed and sank into the chair, defeated. "It's okay. I guess everybody would find out eventually." He reached out a hand and stroked the light sandy hair off his mother's forehead in an affectionate manner. "I'd like you to meet my mother, Harry."  
  
Harry had already stepped back in the room and was now standing beside Neville as he tenderly held her hand.  
  
"R-r-right after Y-you-Know-Who's d-defeat." Neville managed to stutter out as his shoulders sagged and tears threatening to spill filled his eyes.  
  
Placing a hand gently on Neville's shoulder, Harry quietly whispered to him. "It's okay. I know."  
  
"Y-you know?" He asked, the surprise written all over his face.  
  
"Yeah. Last year, I accidentally fell into Dumbledore's pensieve." Harry said sheepishly.  
  
"Oh." A long pause went on before either one spoke again. "Do Ron and Hermione know too?"  
  
Shaking his head 'no', Harry watched as Neville's mother whimpered in her sleep and began thrashing around. A soft cooing noise from Neville put her at ease and once again she fell into an untroubled sleep.  
  
"What are you doing down here so late?" Harry asked after they had lapsed into an uncomfortable silence.  
  
"It's her birthday today." The shy boy said quietly. "No one needs to be alone on their birthday." Harry nodded his head in agreement but remained silent.  
  
"What was her name?" Harry asked as he lowered himself to a sitting position on the floor. He felt the coolness of the tile floor seep through his pajamas and shivered slightly. Neville took no notice but instead, his eyes glazed over and he looked as if he was somewhere else.  
  
"Kathleen. Her name was Kathleen." A hush settled over them once again before Neville spoke again in such a quiet voice that Harry thought he had imagined it. "She and my father met at Hogwarts." Encouraging him to continue, Harry listened as he watched his dorm roommate's eyes light up as he spoke. "She was in Ravenclaw and he was in Gryffindor. They dated for about a year and a half and then proposed about six months after they left Hogwarts. They had a really beautiful wedding. She looked so happy." He said a little wistfully. At the last statement, Harry looked at him oddly. "My Gram, right before I went to Hogwarts, she gave me this pensieve with some of her and other family members' memories."  
  
"Must be nice." Harry said quietly, looking down silently and wringing with his hands.  
  
"Not as nice as I wished." Harry looked up quickly as Neville continued to explain. "They weren't my memories and they never will be. No matter how many times I go into the memories-they will never be mine. I didn't know them, or at least I can't remember if I knew them." He stated firmly. "I wish I had parents but the truth is." Here he took a deep breath; "The truth is I'll never know them, not like my Gram's did. My Grams took over the parental position and she's closer to me then they'll ever be. They can't even recognize me." He sniffled a little at the end as his hand brushed away a tear that had started to roll down his cheek.  
  
Patting him on the back Harry was unsure what to do. "But at least you still have your Gram." He said weakly.  
  
"I know. When I was growing up, loneliness wasn't a problem. I always had an uncle to talk about Quidditch with, an Aunt who could bake cookies when I was at her house. Cousins surrounded me constantly so I was never alone. It was nice but there are some things that you want a parent for."  
  
Harry couldn't believe he was hearing this from Neville. Their lives weren't that different-it was refreshing to be with someone who understood loss, or pain. Hermione and Ron were great to talk to but they never dealt with this stuff.  
  
"I know. There were nights where I'd wake up after dreaming of flashing green lights or an evil laughter and there was no one to go to."  
  
"Oh, Harry. I always did have someone to go to. I can't imagine what it was like."  
  
Harry took a deep breath before he began his story. If he started now, he wasn't going to stop. He would enter unfamiliar territory and tell stuff to Neville not even his best friends knew.  
  
"It was awful. You know the saying 'if you ignore it, maybe it'll go away?' That's what I felt like. My aunt and uncle ignored me almost everyday until I was eleven. They used to lock me under the stairs in the cupboard when they needed to get rid of me." Here, Neville gasped. "It was so dark in there-there was no affection or hope. Just the silent dark and the shadows. Sometimes I wished it would just swallow me whole and I'd never have to deal with any of them or anything ever. Then I got my letter." While he had been speaking, Harry had gotten up out of his chair and was pacing around the small room. "It was like stepping out in the sunlight. Everything was brighter and had more life than anything I had ever seen. There, people needed me and wanted me around. And then." Harry left off, unsure what to say next. How do you say the wizarding world had all its hopes on your shoulders? That what they wanted him to do scared him more than anything and that he wished that his cupboard had swallowed him up? "There's the expression about 'your day in the sun.' That's what it felt like. For one day I was in the sun and it was perfect but then.there was."  
  
"Voldemort." Neville whispered. Harry looked at him; surprised he had said the name. Neville himself looked shocked.  
  
"Yeah. It rained on my sunny day. Wait, I think I mixed up the sayings. It ruined my day in the sun and then it rained on my parade." Harry said with a small smile, attempting to lighten the mood.  
  
Sensing this, Neville smiled a little. "Yeah-maybe you better just leave the expressions out of it. But you never broke. You were always strong."  
  
Oh, if only he knew.  
  
"You're a much better Gryffindor then I'll ever be." Neville continued, oblivious to the sad look on Harry's face. "I can't even stand up to Snape!"  
  
"I'd be as good a Gryffindor as a Slytherin."  
  
"No-you could never be a Slytherin. You're not an evil bastard like Malfoy." He declared.  
  
"The hat almost put me in Slytherin." At Neville's shocked look, he continued. "It kept saying 'You'll do well in Slytherin. It can help you on your way to greatness.' Then lo and behold, I turn out to be a parseltounge."  
  
"So? You're in Gryffindor and so what if you can talk to snakes? You're still a good person or else the hat wouldn't have even let you in Gryffindor."  
  
"Thanks Neville. I better be heading back. I heard the nurse was going to do rounds. She'll flip if I'm not there." He smiled tiredly before leaving.  
  
"Bye Harry."  
  
"Bye Neville." He had just left the room when a thought struck him and he turned around. "Oh, and happy birthday, Mrs. Longbottom." Neville gave him a small smile as he disappeared behind the doorframe.  
  
Walking back, Harry carefully thought over what he had talked about with Neville. He really was a good friend to Harry. This year, Harry was going to try and do the same.  
  
"Mr. Potter!" A voice called out as the sound of footsteps followed. Harry froze and looked ahead in the direction the voice came from. A woman, around fifty with gray streaks running through her brown hair that was done up in a bun, ran forward, clutching some type of chart to her chest. She was wearing the white robes like the doctor. "What are you doing out of your room? We thought you had been kidnapped or had gotten lost." She said exasperatedly.  
  
Harry rolled his eyes at this. Fortunately, it was dark so the woman couldn't see what he was doing. But, still, she continued to rant.  
  
"I was looking everywhere!" Harry refrained to say that if they had checked everywhere then they would have found him. "The emergency unit, all the rooms on your floor, all of the bathrooms, the cafeteria and we actually sent someone down to the morgue!"  
  
"Sorry!" Harry said, not the least bit regretful but did it in hopes of keeping her from screeching. "I was in the mental ward."  
  
"Why, pray tell, were you in the mental ward?"  
  
"Just visiting." She sighed at this but didn't comment. Instead grabbed his elbow and dragged him back to his room. "Now stay here this time." She then turned on her heel and left him sitting on his bed. It was then that he noticed the two parcels near the window.  
  
Harry walked over to them and, in the dark, recognized one as his trunk and assumed the other was the pensieve.  
  
'I'll just look at them some more tomorrow.' He thought as he stifled a yawn and crawled into bed. Before he put his head on the pillow, he noticed a small plastic cup with two pills in it. "Great-my depression meds.' He groaned and grabbed the pills and swallowed them with the water next to them. He covered himself in the blankets and snuggled against the pillow. Within minutes he was asleep.  
  
************* I'm so sorry that I haven't updated. I had all these already written chapters and then I was lazy-but I will try to update again before the month is over-I have a lot of projects for school and if my health teacher actually knew how to use a computer I wouldn't be as stressed as I am right now.  
  
Firstly, I want to thank everybody for the reviews-and yes! It was Neville! He's so sweet so I put him in. Also, for David305, you are absolutely right about his eyes and now I feel kind of stupid but since this is my story and my own little universe, let's pretend that Harry just has really freaky eyes. Hey, he defies the laws of nature all the time- what's wrong with an eye weirdness?  
  
Secondly, I have no idea what Neville's mom's name is-so if anybody knows then I'll change it.  
  
Thirdly, for Powergirl, you'll be glad to hear that Harry gets all angst-y. Yes-that's right, Harry goes into the pensieve! I will stop typing now but I want to say PLEASE, PLEASE R/R!!!!!!! 


	5. Stuck in the past

The next morning, he was woken with a loud shout from outside his door.  
  
'Guess they found out.' Harry thought with a grimace as he slid back under the covers.  
  
Outside, a raging battled was going on between Ron Weasley and the nurse.  
  
"What do you mean we can't see him?!" Ron yelled.  
  
"Mr. Weasley, you must keep your voice down!" The nurse was speaking in a harsh whisper, "I am just doing what was requested. Now please sit down and wait for Dr. Johansson." The quiet padding of her shoes was replaced with the murmuring of several people outside his door.  
  
"This is crazy!" Harry heard Hermione say.  
  
"Why won't they let us in?" This was a quieter, calmer voice that Harry assumed was Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"I want to have a word with that doctor." Sirius said and that provoked more muttering.  
  
"Sirius." A voice began. 'Ha! I'm right about who it was!' Harry thought happily. It was then that he realized he desperately needed something to do if this was his entertainment. "Did he seem odd to you yesterday?" Probably Professor Lupin, Harry guessed. Always the calm logical one and the voice of reason.  
  
"Not really. A little sad." Oh, that was an understatement if he ever heard one. "Maybe a little distant. He was very upset with Albus so it was hard to tell."  
  
"What did Dumbledore tell him?" Hermione asked.  
  
"I'm not the one to tell you." Thank God for that. Harry breathed a sigh of relief at knowing it was all a secret. He knew his friends could handle the fact he was a parseltounge but add in the fact that he was Slytherin's heir and Voldemort's grandson.He shuddered to think of what would happen.  
  
"Excuse me." Another voice joined the group outside. How many people were out there? "Why is everyone standing outside Harry's door?" The doctor had come at last.  
  
"Weren't you the one who said Harry Potter could have no visitors?" Mr. Weasley asked.  
  
"I did no such thing, but if it's true then I'll have to ask you all to wait in the waiting room. That is what it's there for." Trust his doctor to be cracking jokes at inappropriate times.  
  
More sounds of feet shuffling and then the door creaked open.  
  
"Harry? Are you awake?"  
  
"Yeah. They all woke me up." He said as he stretched himself into sitting position.  
  
"And why are they out there when they could be in here?"  
  
"You wouldn't believe it if I said I had no idea?" He tried weakly but stopped when the doctor shook his head no. "All right-you caught me." He threw his hands up in the air and laid back down on the bed. "I did it. I requested that I wanted no visitors."  
  
"Was it when you snuck out?" The doctor said as he raised an eyebrow suspiciously.  
  
"It wasn't like I woke up that afternoon and thought to myself, 'Gee, I wonder how I can cause panic and chaos in this hospital'. It was sort of an accident."  
  
"Oh do tell. The adventures of Harry Potter interest me to no end."  
  
"Well I had just told the nurse my request and then I saw this shadowy figure."  
  
"Ah, the shadowy figure." He bobbed his head, thinking this over. "All the great horror movies have one."  
  
"I had a wand." He protested weakly but continued his story when he saw the doctor smile. "Anyway, I followed the shadow to the mental ward and found Neville Longbottom."  
  
"Say no more. Neville's here a lot. I think they actually have a room for him. It's really sad about his parents." He bowed his head in thought and then looked up again. "Now, let's get you checked out."  
  
"Oh joy!" Harry said as he clasped his hands together but otherwise, just stayed put and watched the doctor say the quick spell. "Dr. Johansson?" He questioned after the doctor was done.  
  
"Oh for goodness-just call me Joe, okay? I feel so old." He said with a smile.  
  
"Okay, then Joe." Harry couldn't help as a giggle escaped his lips. "Sorry- seems odd. Did your parents seriously name you Joe Johansson?" He pursed his lips to try and stop himself from smiling.  
  
"Of course not. My parents were nice. It's William Johansson but I went by Joe a lot."  
  
"Okay Joe. Anyway, what spell do you keep using on me?"  
  
"It's called the Personal Information Spell."  
  
"Wow, they must of run out of creative names before they got to this spell."  
  
"The name doesn't matter. Anyway, before I was so rudely interrupted," He glared at Harry who smiled back cheerily, "You just say the spell and then add the person's or animal's name and it will give you all the information on them. Quite handy really."  
  
"How does it go?" Harry asked eagerly.  
  
"Why, want to become a doctor?"  
  
Harry sat in the bed and considered it for a minute or two. "I don't know. Maybe but this is just for curiosity-no learning involved."  
  
"Fine-but I hope you don't use it for evil purposes." Dr. Joe said as he sighed and took out his wand.  
  
"Such as?"  
  
"I don't know. How about finding out if a person is a virgin or not?"  
  
"Really? You just gave me a way to use it! Joe-I'm beginning to think you have a rebellious streak in you." Harry mock scolded the doctor.  
  
"Don't tell the other doctors. Anyway-the spell is historicus corporeus. You can try it if you want."  
  
"Okay." Reaching over and grabbing his wand, he slid off the bed and faced the doctor. "If this goes wrong, it's a good thing we're in the hospital." He thought he saw the doctor's eyes widen but he just ignored it. "Historicus Corporeus William Johansson!" A golden beam shot out of Harry's wand and stayed in front the doctor before forming words. "Cool." Scrolling through quickly, he made the light go away.  
  
"Impressive. It took me a week to master that."  
  
"Thanks. How long do I need to stay in the hospital, anyway?" He asked as he crawled back into bed.  
  
"Couple weeks." At Harry's shocked expression he added, "We need to wait for your body to cleanse itself of the magic."  
  
"Do I have to stay in bed the whole time?" He asked, eyes pleading the answer to be no.  
  
"Only if you keep sneaking out at midnight."  
  
"Deal. How about three in the morning?" At the doctor's scowl he smiled, "Kidding, kidding."  
  
"Are you ever going to let your friends in?" He asked, gesturing towards the door.  
  
"When I feel like it. I don't want to talk to them now."  
  
"Okay, that's fine. But just remember, this room isn't an escape from your world. It can't protect you or offer you any peace. It's just prolonging the inevitable."  
  
"Doctor and counselor. Aren't I fortunate?" Harry said as he watched the doctor walk out of the room and shut the door.  
  
Getting up, Harry quickly ran into the bathroom, took a shower, got redressed and took care of everything else before running back out and sliding over the tiles to the pensieve that was sitting on top of his trunk. Gathering the heavy item in his arm, he made his way back to the bed. He looked at the basin in shock. Unlike Dumbledore's, no silvery stuff was floating around. Instead, it was just an empty stone bowl. He spotted a note sitting on top of it and quickly opened it and read.  
  
Harry,  
  
I can't tell you how much it means to me that you have agreed to do this. I understand there are painful memories but you can't just pretend they don't exist and it might make it easier to deal with them instead of keeping them locked in your mind. The instructions to use it are simple. To place a memory in, all you need to do is concentrate on the memory while placing a wand to your temple. Then pull the wand away and place it on the rim of the bowl. To remove one, place the wand on the side of the bowl, think of the memory you want to get rid of and when it appears, pull the wand away and press it to your temple. Fairly easy, no? Good luck and if it's not too much trouble, the Aurors would like to view it.  
  
~Ari  
  
Direct and to the point-that was Ari. Rereading the end of the note he felt anger rise inside him. How dare she show all of his memories to the Aurors! He was doing this for her mother-not for a bunch of ministry workers. He would protest later, but now, he wanted to get it over with.  
  
He quickly thought of everything that had happened. Flashes of Voldemort, Deatheaters, blood, Mrs. Figg and total chaos flooded his mind. But what occurred the most were the glimpses of red: blood, hate, anger, pain. He place his wand to his temple and the to the bowl. A silvery strand ghosted across the surface before it finally settled down in a swirling motion. Then a thought struck Harry.  
  
'What if they saw too much?' There was only one way to know for sure and he wasn't liking the option very much. He sat on the bed and stared off into space for about ten minutes, trying to think of other ways to know for sure. Wasn't experiencing it once enough? Why must he do it again? He knew what he had to do. So with firm resolve, he gripped his wand with a shaky hand and lowered it over the bowl before pressing it gently in the mist.  
  
~o00o~  
  
After the fog had cleared, he found himself in a living room. There on the floor he watched his past self and Mrs. Dorothy Figg playing a card game on the worn carpet, with their backs against the couch.  
  
"Ha! I win again!" Dorothy shouted as she threw the remaining cards down and did a little victory dance.  
  
Past Harry was laughing as she sat back down breathless. Present Harry closed his eyes, trying to block out the scene. The last time he had seen her alive.  
  
"No fair! You're like fifty years older. You have more experience." Past Harry protested as he threw his cards on the ground and began shuffling them.  
  
"Another time, Harry?" She asked with a smile.  
  
"We're going to play until I win." He declared. Present Harry mouthed the words-this would forever be etched in his memory.  
  
"I guess this means no sleep tonight!" She said with a smile as she looked around the room. "I wonder where Ari and Sirius are? It's eleven thirty!"  
  
"I don't know. Maybe." But he never finished his sentences. At the moment, the door flew open, revealing cloaked figures. The summer wind swept their cloaks around them, making them seem more mysterious and dangerous than ever. The leader, pulling back his hood, smiled a grim smile as his red eyes shone with animalistic hunger.  
  
Voldemort. Harry could feel the pain ripple through his scar.  
  
"Stand behind me Harry." Dorothy whispered as she grabbed her wand and rose to her feet. "Leave at once!" she yelled to the stranger.  
  
"And miss all the fun? Never!" Voldemort said in an even tone. Voldemort turned to his two lackeys and immediately they sprung forward, shouting spells. Before Harry even had time to blink, he was already tied up with ropes that ran from the ceiling to the floor. Across the room, he saw Dorothy in the same position.  
  
Clapping his hands together once, Voldemort crossed the room and grabbed Harry's chin so he was looking him in the face.  
  
"Yes." He breathed, his voice hissing like a snake, "Yes, this is fun and I haven't even brought out the games." He moved to the side so Harry could watch as one of the figures removed a cloth. The light danced over the silver and Harry shivered. There, arranged on a small table lay about twenty knives of all different sizes just screaming to cut something. Voldemort crossed over to the knives and picked up a small one and ran his finger along the edge softly. Blood poured from the cut and he closed his eyes is pleasure. "Just wait Harry Potter-the fun's just beginning."  
  
At first, Harry had been so sure that those knives were to be embedded into his flesh within moments of their arrivals. But half and hour passed and one had yet to mar his skin. Instead, he watched a worse torture. Dorothy hung across from him, her hair hanging down in limp strands, matted by the blood, sweat and tears. Around fifteen of the knives had slashed at her skin but she remained strong and had yet to cry out in pain. Harry had doubted whether he would have lasted around five.  
  
"You know Dorothy." Voldemort began in a conversational tone as he reached over the tray and grabbed a twisted dagger. "You're stronger than I thought. Haven't screamed or cried. Really disappointing." He cut across her stomach; soaking her already blood covered clothes. "Maybe if I cut out your vocal cords than you'll have a reason for your silence." He raised the dagger and let it slide across her jugular before twisting sharply into the side of it. A stream of blood drifted down her collarbone before joining the millions of drops the puddle around her feet.  
  
"No! Stop!" Harry cried, struggling against the bonds. It seemed the wizard or witch who used the silencing spell on him let it finally wear off. His wrists and ankles were now only covered with his red, raw flesh and blood began to drip occasionally down his arm when he started struggling too much.  
  
"Ah. Mr. Potter. Feeling neglected?" He gave Harry a smirk that Harry glared at but that seemed to only make him laugh harder. "Oh, well. I suppose we can play with you now." He said with childhood innocence. If Harry had any doubts about Voldemort having any sanity-they were crushed now.  
  
When the first knife touched Harry's skin on his chest, as his shirt had been ripped off and now hung torn and trapped by the ropes, he felt anger instead of fear. Here, this bastard was enjoying playing human pincushion with him after he had finished torturing the closest thing he had to a grandmother. His scar hurt more than ever. The knife pricked across his skin, letting red drops fall in a stead stream, trickling down his newly bronzed chest, the pooling at his navel before latching on to his jeans and staining them crimson. Then without warning, Voldemort grabbed the twisted knife and embedded it in his lower arm. Pain ripped through his arm as he bit his lip to keep from making a sound.  
  
"You know, Harry Potter," Voldemort began, twisting the knife to each side, shredding the muscles and bone that lay beneath it, "One quick motion and your life is all over. But where's the fun in that? I'm going to make you feel all the pain you gave me fifteen years ago." In a fluid movement, Harry felt a sharp pain in his side and glanced down to see the grip of a knife sticking out of his lower side. He took this time to glance up at Dorothy. Her head was hanging down and rolling to the side as blood from every part of her body fell to the floor, forming a large puddle underneath her. That was all the strength he needed as he looked back at Voldemort and glared with all the hatred he could muster. "Why, Mister Potter-if looks could kill." He laughed mirthlessly and raised a wand with his now empty hands, as the knife he had been using was now inside Harry's side. "But we don't want to kill yet. Crucio!" He felt pain thread its way through his body and he twisted in agony, which only served to drive the knife in deeper. An hour had passed and Harry could no longer feel the knife scrape across his skin. He was sure all of his sensory nerves were dead as he hung his head down and let it loll around his shoulders.  
  
This whole time, Dorothy had been silent, drifting from consciousness to unconsciousness. Harry himself was so tired. He was sure he had passed out at least once. He could no longer hold his head up or count the number of marks his body had. After a while, he heard the snap of a rope and the next second, he was on the floor, his face lying in his blood that had seeped from his wounds.  
  
"Harry, I don't think you're enjoying our game. Maybe we should give you a turn. Imperio!" Suddenly everything that had once seemed important-such as staying alive-ceased to seem so. He felt so light with no care in the world. He wanted to drown in the feeling until pain and suffering failed to exist. Then he heard the voice. "Pick up the knife." It whispered. Why not obey the voice? He was too weak to protest and dutifully did as he was told. He could make out that the knife was sharp and already had blood staining it but it didn't matter to him. "Go over to Dorothy Figg." His feet moved on his own accord and before he knew it, he was standing in front of her, knife poised for attack. She looked up at him and tears shone in her eyes as she saw the cloudy vacant look his eyes held. "Stab her in her heart." The voice insisted louder. Even through the curse, he watched as her lips quickly mouthed the words 'I love you.'  
  
It was then that he finally began to break through. He lowered the knife that had been pointed at her heart. "Do it!" The voice egged on. The thrall was back and his knife was raised again. But his movements were jerky as the two voices in his head took control. Voldemort's voice screamed at him to thrust the knife in her chest and it finally grew to strong for Harry in his weakened state. Instead of ramming it in her heart, he managed at the last moment to will the knife to stab her in the upper thigh instead. Her lip trembled as she concealed a scream.  
  
"You never fail to surprise me. I'll admit, when I came here, I wanted to kill you." Voldemort said as he walked past Harry, who was slowly gaining the upper hand in fighting for control of his mind, "But now I don't. Now I want to break you." As he said this, he grabbed a plain dagger and thrust it into Dorothy's chest before twisting it, making her scream in pain-then she said no more. She made no more noise or movements. She just hung there, eyes glassy and open, her life had already been ended but her blood continued to fall to the ground.  
  
"No!" Harry shouted as he reached for her. "No." He whispered more quietly as he touched a hand to her cheek, which was already becoming cold. He gently pressed her eyelids closed as he stepped away from her body. It was then that he became aware of the knife he still possessed. He whirled around to face Voldemort. The man, no he wasn't a man, the monster was laughing at the sight of her mangled body. Red flashed before his eyes: Anger, his blood, Dorothy's blood. Now Harry wanted to see Voldemort's. He plunged the dagger into his upper chest and caught him off guard. Instead of screaming in pain, he simply laughed as he pulled the dagger out and tossed it to the ground, smirking at Harry's wide-eyed expression.  
  
"Did you think that would kill me? It's merely a flesh wound. I'm an immortal, greater than death!" He laughed maniacally as he gripped his wand and raised it. "It's been fun Potter, but now it's time to end it-but first." He reached forward and grabbed Harry's arm, pushing him up against a wall. He jerked the sleeve up, revealing unblemished flesh. Leaning close, he whispered in his ear, "I've scarred you, broken you but now I want own you." Harry barely heard the words he muttered as he placed the tip of his want to his arm. But the words didn't matter as a searing pain swept across his arm, traveling until it reached his scar, which burned a brilliant white and erupted with pain. After seconds that seemed like an eternity the wand was taken away from his skin but left a blackened skull with a snake protruding from it's mouth in place. The Dark Mark.  
  
"Now it's time to end it. Goodbye Harry Potter. May we never meet again." He raised his wand slowly and stepped back about two feet before pointing the wand at his scar. Then he spoke the two words that seemed to always follow Harry "Avada Kedavra." The sound of rushing water filled his ears as he watched the green beam shoot towards him. He felt that his brain should have been muddled but instead it was perfectly clear.  
  
Stretching out two hands before him, he concentrated on the green energy and then whispered one word. "Imperio." Forcing all of his magical energy into those words, he watched as the green light met the light blue light his hands emitted. Green swirled with blue, twisting and turning, each fighting to dominate each other. After a moment, the green gave in and allowed itself to be lost in the blue. Using his hands still, Harry pushed all the energy the two curses had at Voldemort. He had barely enough time to register Voldemort's eyes widen slightly as the blue light entered his chest and then he was gone. Not forever, but for the time being. He turned towards the other two who were cowering in fear. At the time Harry had no idea why but know he could see: His eyes had turned a solid green and his finger tips crackled with energy just waiting to be unleashed. His hair stood on end and a heavy wind seemed to swirl around him, lifting his feet up so he hovered in the air. They then scrambled to their feet before dashing out the front door that had been blown off their hinges when they first arrived. Harry glanced around the living room one last time, surveying the over turned chairs, broken tables and crooked picture frames. The floors were littered with knives, blood and fragments of wood. The walls were splattered with Harry's blood where Voldemort had pushed him. Dorothy's body hung limply. It was the image of chaos. He thought no more as the wind subsided and his legs gave way. He collapsed on the ground and watched as his world blackened.  
  
~o00o~  
  
For anyone who actually reads this story, I am so sorry for taking so long. I just finished my finals so I have all of this extra time on my hands. Truthfully, I just stared at my computer and thought my story sucked-but I think being busy sounds better.  
  
Thanks to everyone for the reviews.  
  
Also, does anybody have any suggestions for the pairings? I am up for any and all pairings and right now I need a direction to go to because if I wait too long my story will sound like a Mary Sue. She's one of my characters who will NOT be ending up with Harry unless it happens towards the very, very end of my story's sequel's sequel. I plan to make it long.  
  
Oh, also: I know that anti-depressants should take longer to work, but as I had a three month timeframe to work with and I didn't want Harry to be all mopey for the summer. Let's just pretend that they are a special kind. 


	6. Spells, Letters, Jello and Poker

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters except for Joe, Andrea, Mike, Bruce, Louis, Anna and Jacob. Oh, also note that the letters Harry sent are completely stupid but I had nothing to do for a chapter and I thought we would check back out in the waiting room. Oh well.Please R/R!! Thanks.  
  
  
  
When the world finally turned light again, he sat up startled as he glanced around at his surroundings.  
  
'Right, the hospital.' Harry breathed out a sigh of relief; glad he was no longer trapped in his memories. His stomach gave a jerk as he realized what he saw, what the Aurors would see. They would watch Voldemort brand him with the Dark Mark. He could just remove the memory, he reasoned as he felt the wet path of tears that was on his face. But if he did that, then he would have to enter the pensieve again to see the new memory he had placed in it. No, he decided after a while, he couldn't go back in and live it a third time. Everyone would just have to know the truth. He just hoped they'd accept him.  
  
That afternoon Harry studied. Normally the only time he did this was for exams or tests but as of recently he thought it essential to his life. He was tired of being unprepared; tired of letting other people die while he escaped with luck.  
  
The little rule of no magic over the summer seemed insignificant in light of recent activities. Besides, he's just love to have a word alone with Fudge. Right now, he wasn't so sure the minister wouldn't expel him. After all, he had used an Unforgivable Curse, which led him to the other thought that was preoccupying his mind.  
  
He had preformed wandless magic, a fact he had not been aware of until going in to the pensieve, as he was kind of out of it at the time. Which brought up another question-how did he survive? He had a sneaking suspicion that maybe it was the wandless magic that kept him from dying. Maybe some sort of 'don't die spell'. Harry shook his head-that sounded stupid even in his head. He pushed all thoughts out of his head and picked up his transfiguration book and tried to turn his lamp into a dog.  
  
After fifteen minutes, he had managed to get a dog shape but instead of wagging it's tail when it was happy, it's eyes glowed a golden color, which was kind of scary in a way-like it was possessed. Changing it back, he slumped against the pillow in his bed and tapped the wand against his head trying to figure it out.  
  
'Why do I even need this? If I want a dog, I'll just go to the pet store.' He fumed as he muttered the words one more time. To his surprise, a golden retriever sat in the place the lamp was and barked happily. Perfect. Harry smiled happily and turned the dog back into a lamp before grabbing a pencil and writing 'Max' on the lamp.  
  
'All dogs should have a name.' He thought cheerily as he hummed a tune in his head. He vaguely thought that maybe it wasn't such a good idea to do that cheering charm on himself but paid no heed to his inner voice. Instead, he threw aside his transfiguration book and grabbed his Potions one.  
  
Contrary to most of the Gryffindors' beliefs, he actually liked potions. The skills of being a potion master were probably more important that if you were a transfiguration master, if there was such a thing. Seriously, what good would it be if you were up against Voldemort and you learned how to transfigure a rock into a bird? 'If only Snape wasn't the teacher.' Harry thought with a sigh as he began studying the uses of a griffin's blood.  
  
An hour later, he was still reading, pausing every once in a while to think, 'Ha! Snape's not going to get me with this!' before reading again. A knock barely disrupted him from his book, as he simply called out 'Come in.' still not taking his eyes away from the text.  
  
"Hey Harry." Dr. Joe said as he peered around the door.  
  
"Hi Joe." He muttered, still looking at his book.  
  
"How are you feeling today?" He asked, stepping into the room.  
  
"Sickened." He said as he scrunched up his face.  
  
Looking concerned, he rushed over to Harry's bed all ready to perform a spell. "How? What's wrong?"  
  
"They use animals in fizzing wiz-bees. I don't think I could ever eat another." Harry said, oblivious to the doctor's concern.  
  
Sighing in relief, Joe settled himself on the end of his bed. "Geez. Don't say that-I thought you were hurt." Harry looked up apologetically. "Anyway, I just came to tell you that I'll be leaving for a couple of days." This got Harry's attention as he snapped the book shut and looked up.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"I have a doctor's convention." He said, smiling at the disappointment the young man showed about his news.  
  
"Now who will I talk to?" Harry pouted.  
  
"I bet there are twenty people outside just dying to talk to you." He said, gesturing towards the door.  
  
"I don't want to. Oh!" Harry jumped out of his bed and ran across the room and grabbed a couple of objects. "Can you give this to Arabella Figg?" He gave the doctor the pensieve. "And.could you wait a minute? I'm going to write a couple of notes." Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed his pencil and began writing away.  
  
Dr. Joe just nodded as he glanced around the room. His eyes landed on the lamp with the name Max on it.  
  
"Harry? Why does that lamp have a name?" He asked, not taking his eyes off it.  
  
Harry rolled his eyes and laughed. "Every dog needs a name." He said as he reached for a new sheet of paper to continue writing on.  
  
"I'm not going to comment on that and just hope it's not a hallucination."  
  
"It's not. I'm not crazy-I think." Harry said as he folded up a piece of paper and scribbled a name on it. "All done. Give these to the people's whose names are on it." He handed the doctor about ten pieces of paper. "When are you leaving on your trip?"  
  
"Three days. And I will deliver these notes. Get some sleep-and try not to give anymore names to inanimate objects."  
  
"Aww. Ruin my fun." Harry said as he opened his Potions book again and began reading. "Have fun on your trip." The doctor nodded and left the room.  
  
Outside in the waiting room, around twenty people all sat talking. It was the same group from a couple of days ago but now everyone seemed so much more alive.  
  
"Excuse me." Joe said as he entered the room. "Arabella Figg?" The same woman from before stood up and crossed over to where the doctor was.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"This is from Harry." He gave her the pensieve and immediately her eyes darkened and filled with sorrow.  
  
"Thank you." She whispered quietly as she sat back down next to Sirius who gave her shoulder a brief squeeze before turning back to the doctor.  
  
"Oh, and Harry also wants me to give these notes to.Ron." Ron immediately came up and grabbed the note. "Hermione." She did the same. "Sirius, Ari, Hagrid, this one's addressed to the Weasley family, Dumbledore and the Hogwarts staff, and Neville." After a few minutes, everybody was seated with a note. The doctor walked away, simply wondering how he had written all these notes in less than ten minutes.  
  
"Should we read them aloud?" Hermione asked, glancing up from her note.  
  
"I suppose. Unless it's too personal." Mrs. Weasley said as she glanced at Sirius, Ron, Hermione, and Dumbledore-the only four who would get the personal notes. The first three murmured 'no'.  
  
Dumbledore commented that he would keep some parts to himself and gestured for the others to commence reading.  
  
"I'll go first." Hagrid said as he opened the note. "Dear Hagrid, I wanted to say thanks for everything-saving me from the Dursleys," A couple people laughed at this, "being my friend, Hedwig-she was my first birthday gift you know-and for being so supportive as a friend and a teacher. I hope you had a good summer doing the 'secret business'-which I think I figured out where you went." Here, the half-giant blushed and continued reading, "I just want everybody to know that me being locked in my room was my choice and not done to hurt any of you. Thanks for everything." Hagrid wiped away a tear and held his note to him, like it was a precious object.  
  
"I'll read ours." Mrs. Weasley said as she opened hers up and cleared her throat.  
  
"Dear all the Weasleys (except Ron 'cause he has his own letter) I wanted to thank you all for everything. Since the second year, you all have been the closest thing I've had to a family-with the exception of the Figgs and Sirius. I can't tell you how it felt to be welcomed into your family. For the first time ever, I had brothers and sisters and the closest things to parents I'll ever have. I just wanted to say thanks for making me feel loved and needed-and not needed in the way that the wizarding world thinks of me-but like a family does. I love you all. Harry."  
  
At this point, Mrs. Weasley burst into tears and hugged Arthur so hard it looked like he was going to snap in half. Ginny was hugging Bill and Charlie-all had watery smiles on their faces. Even Fred and George looked serious as they linked arms with Percy who was trying his best not to look as happy as he felt.  
  
"Mine isn't really a note." Ari said as she opened her piece of paper. She flipped it around and showed a very realistic sketch of both the Figg women and Sirius, smiling brightly. "On the back it says: Ari-I did this sketch a while ago and thought you should have it. I put what happened into the pensieve and you may show it to the Aurors if you like but I would prefer if you saw it without them first to decide for yourself. Memories are very personal so don't share mine with the world. A word of advice-take someone with you, Sirius and Dumbledore would be best. Don't let Ron and Hermione look if you can help it, but knowing them it wouldn't do much good."  
  
"That's all it says." She said as she folded the paper back up and placed the pensieve in her lap to keep it safe.  
  
"I can read a little of mine." Sirius said next.  
  
"Dear Sirius,  
  
After this experience happened, a few words popped into my mind. They were 'Voldemort sucks.' I don't blame anyone for what happened except me-or Sarah Evans-though that isn't really nice so I'll just blame myself. My dad did an incredible job of picking a godfather-I couldn't ask for a better one. I love you like a father and don't worry about me staying in my room. If you were me and you heard all that stuff, would you want to face anybody? Give me a few days and I'll be better. Thank you for being there for me this summer. Harry." Sirius wiped a tear from his eye and rested his head on Ari's shoulder. If anybody had any comments on what Harry meant in the letter, they kept them quiet.  
  
"My turn, I suppose." Ron said as he unfolded his letter.  
  
"Dear Ron,  
  
You know you're like a brother to me so I don't need to write down that stuff. You and Hermione have been two anchors in my life and I'd probably go crazy without you guys. Oh, and by the way, I heard you this morning and I must tell you that I did lock myself in my room and I just need some time by myself but it would mean a lot knowing you support my decisions. I miss you and Hermione a lot and I can't wait for school to start so I can get out of here and go back home. Which makes me wonder-have the doctors said I could use a broomstick yet? I haven't asked but I really want to fly again. I'll see you all soon. Harry."  
  
"Now mine." Hermione began reading her note.  
  
"Dear Hermy,  
  
I have done something so incredible that it would make you proud. I studied! Let's see if Voldemort can catch me unprepared this time! Oh, just wondering, you know that Spew thing? Can we do something with that for Fudge? That imbecile-he lost my vote for re-election. Also, I have something really big to tell you and Ron but I'll wait for later. It involves the library and books that is if Professor Dumbledore says I can tell you. I don't really need to explain anything to you about my room barricading because I'm sure you'll understand. See you guys soon. Harry."  
  
"Hermy?" Ron teased.  
  
"Oh shut up Ronnikins!" He scowled at her before letting out a groan.  
  
"Oh no. We have to go to the library again. This will be another Sorcerers Stone thing-won't it?"  
  
"Probably. And it's S.P.E.W.!" she muttered as she glanced through the letter. "Professor Dumbledore-is it alright?"  
  
"Yes, it's fine. Do I read mine now?" Everybody nodded. "Okay, but I warn you I may need to cut stuff out."  
  
"Dear Headmaster and Professors (Lupin, if you're there, I'm counting you too),  
  
First, I want to say that I'm very angry with you Professor for not telling me. Next, I need to figure out the-oops. Can't read that" Dumbledore muttered as he skipped ahead. "I have been studying for a little bit and I also need to talk to you about something in the pensieve so I need you to go check it. Professor Snape-if he's there, if not, tell him that I actually do pick up my book in the summer and I won't give him a chance to fail me. Professor McGonagall, really, what is the purpose of changing my lamp into a dog? How will I use that?" Dumbledore's eyes scanned the rest of the page before declaring it was too personal to read.  
  
Both of the Professors mentioned were there but both had different expressions.  
  
"That Potter boy! Just wait till he steps into my classroom." He said, eyes glowing with menace.  
  
"Transfiguration is useful!" McGonagall declared, stopping Snape from his plans of torture.  
  
"Of course it is Minerva." Snape said mockingly as she glared at him.  
  
"Neville, would you like to read yours?" Dumbledore asked, ignoring two of his staff that were trying to blow each other up just by glaring.  
  
"No sir. It's kind of personal. Mostly is says that he was glad I talked to him and that he felt really comfortable around me." He said shyly.  
  
"Okay then. If we have no more business here, I think we," He gestured, meaning the other two teachers who were now cracking their knuckles at each other, "Should go. Good day." He swept past the others and grabbed Snape's and McGonagall's elbows and began to talk about licorice flavors.  
  
Back in the hospital room, Harry was still reading, this time his charm book. A knock at the door brought him out of his reading-almost like déjà vu about half an hour ago with the doctor. Instead of the doctor poking his head in, a young teen, around Harry's age, poked her head through the door.  
  
"Hi." She said cheerily as she entered fully. She was dressed in all white, much like the doctors and nurses.  
  
"Um, hi." He said unsurely. No one else had entered his room besides the doctors and maybe a nurse or two. "Who are you?"  
  
"Andrea, a volunteer for the hospital." She said as she grabbed a chair and maneuvered it so it was facing the bed and she was two feet away from him.  
  
"Oh. What are you doing here?" He asked gesturing to the room.  
  
"I'm here to see if you want anything to eat. No, correction, you can't eat anything unless you can slurp it through a straw." At his confused look she added, "You have a healing hole in your stomach-you need to have liquids for a couple days so they'll go down easier. Here." She passed him a menu with several types of drinks on it.  
  
"So the next few day I can only have drinks?" He asked as he looked over the menu.  
  
"Oh and Jell-o."  
  
"Jell-o." He stared at her from over the top of the paper.  
  
"Tricky substance Jell-o. Is it a liquid or a solid?" She smiled as she began picking up a couple of his schoolbooks that he threw to the floor a while ago.  
  
"Is it good Jell-o? I heard hospital food was gross."  
  
"Oh the food's good. It's just the Jell-o that's nasty."  
  
"Just my luck." He muttered as she looked sympathetically at him. He stopped studying his menu a while ago and was now looking at her. She was actually pretty, Harry thought. She had black hair that ran to her shoulders and clear deep blue eyes that were sparkled with life. Her skin bordered on pale but with just a touch of peachiness that made her look friendly. She was probably only around five foot two he decided as she sat on the chair again. Despite her appearance, he only felt friendship for her and knew that was all that would ever be between them.  
  
"Umm.Just out of curiosity, has Edna the nurse came into your room yet?" She asked, eyes shining with amusement. "Yesterday she's went on and on about how she wanted to give you a sponge bath."  
  
Harry's eyes widened in horror as he felt his cheeks begin to burn. "Oh God." He buried his head in his pillow and felt like he should bang his head against the wall.  
  
"Don't worry. I'll try and keep her out." She laughed at his expression of relief.  
  
"Thanks, can I just have water?" He asked, handing her back the menu.  
  
"Just water. You need something with substance.get pumpkin juice."  
  
"What's wrong with water?"  
  
"Nothing, it just looks like you haven't eaten in days." At his look she blushed slightly, "Oops, bad expression. Anyway, you can have both."  
  
"Fine." He said as he threw his hands in the hair and leaned back against the pillow.  
  
Pulling the tray forward she quickly shouted the request. Instantly, the two drinks appeared and she handed them to him. "It's a perk of staying in a wizard hospital."  
  
"Sort of like Hogwarts." He said as he grabbed the water.  
  
"I suppose. I've never been there myself."  
  
"Really?" He asked, he hadn't noticed an accent.  
  
"Yeah-Beauxbaton. Je parle francais et anglais."  
  
"Oh. What's it like there?" He asked. He understood the words enough to guess the meaning.  
  
For around fifteen minutes she began explaining everything she knew about it and he listened, enthralled.  
  
"Now I want to go to that school." He whined as he reached for the pumpkin juice that was still sitting on the tray. She smiled that 'I told you so' smile and he glared.  
  
"Yeah but now I want to transfer to Hogwarts. I think they have better teachers."  
  
"I suppose. I never checked around about other teachers. All of them are okay. Except for Snape. He has it in for me." He said, setting the glass down.  
  
A twinkle of amusement was in her eyes when he said the last statement. "Really? Why?"  
  
"Oh." He waved his hand dismissively, "My father and him didn't like each other so now he's carrying an old grudge and hates me too. If you're volunteering, will you get in trouble for staying with me?"  
  
"I don't think so. If anybody asks though, I left five minutes after I got here and then went to the third floor." Andrea said with a smile. Her eyes glanced around the room as she noticed a Potions book lying near the bed. "So, do you throw all your books on the floor, or just the ones you don't like?"  
  
"Oops." He replied sheepishly as she propped it against his legs and sat back down on the chair.  
  
"Let's go for a walk!" She suggested suddenly, springing to her feet.  
  
"Now? How do I know you're not trying to kill me or something?" He asked suspiciously.  
  
"Because I'm asking you to go for a walk with me in a crowded hospital not go into some back alley and hand over your wand." Andrea sighed exasperatedly.  
  
"Fine, fine." He said, putting his hands up in defense. "Just let me get dressed." In a few minutes, he emerged, fully dressed in new muggles clothes that he bought with the Figgs and Sirius on his birthday.  
  
"You clean up well, Potter." She said as she gripped his arm and dragged him out of the room. "I hate hospital rooms-they're yucky." She made a face and he laughed.  
  
"Did you ever think that maybe working in a hospital was not your calling?" He joked as they walked down the hallway.  
  
"Well I figured it out now. Maybe a teacher or something." She said thoughtfully.  
  
"I hate to ruin this walk but can we steer clear of the waiting room?" He asked, glancing around nervously.  
  
"Oh yeah.you're the person who requested no visitors. We just have to be careful." She said as she pulled him around the corner and peered over it at the open area where the waiting room was. "Okay, I say we cross at the nurses station, which is right across from the waiting room, then run quickly."  
  
"Great plan." Harry muttered sarcastically as they crept cautiously to the nurses' station. Once it was a foot away, they both dived behind it.  
  
Andrea was softly humming the Mission Impossible song and got louder each step.  
  
"Will you cut that out?" He asked, smacking her on the back of the head gently.  
  
"Sorry." She whispered, trying not to laugh. Finally, they dived across the open space and entered another corridor, safely out of view of the waiting room. "Whew. That was fun." Harry simply stared at her. "Let's go up two floors."  
  
"What's two floors up?" Harry wondered out loud as they made their way towards the stairwell.  
  
"The sixth floor."  
  
"Very NOT funny. Seriously, though."  
  
"It's a secret tradition that I accidentally stumbled upon." She quickly ran up the stairs, Harry following close behind her. When he reached the top, he glanced around the floor. It looked like his floor except there were more people in the waiting room-all looking like they had been hexed. He watched two guys with antlers start to compare whose were bigger before they started ramming their heads together.  
  
"I know it's a little wild up here."Andrea said slowly as she glanced around the room.  
  
"It's okay. Who needs the Discovery Channel when you have this going on two floors above you." She gave him a smile before motioning him to follow her down one of the corridors. They walked for a couple of minutes until she paused at one door and then knocked three times before swinging the door open.  
  
Inside, Harry was greeted with a scene that reminded him vaguely of those old westerns or mob movies that Dudley used to watch. Five figures were sitting hunched over a table that Harry assumed had once been a bed. It was hard to make out the people's features as a hazy fog of cigarette and cigar smoke hovered in the air. As they approached, the shapes became more defined and he could just glimpse round disks scattered all over the table haphazardly and five hands fanning out cards in front of them.  
  
"You brought me to a poker game?" He asked Andrea, turning towards her in disbelief.  
  
"A famous poker game." She sighed as she waved to all the players and was rewarded with a chorus of 'hello-s'.  
  
"Well? Are you going to sit down?" A man grunted out as he waved his wand creating two chairs. She strode forward casually, dragging Harry along with her. As they went deeper into the room, Harry was sure that the smoke would choke him. Instead, it smelled more of cinnamon, vanilla and strawberries-not the least bit unpleasant.  
  
He quickly sat down next to Andrea who was starting a conversation with a man to her left.  
  
"Come on, Louis! I just need five. Besides you owe me." She pleaded. While 'Louis' was silently thinking her request over, Harry took the moment to study him.  
  
He was probably around fifty-five, as his dark hair had small flecks of gray. But that was the only clue to his age. His skin was a rich brown, smooth and flawless with laugh lines around his mouth etched into his skin. The only odd thing that struck Harry about his appearance was the dark sunglasses that hid his eyes. Louis sighed as he bent over to the side of his chair and straightened up with five of the circular objects in his hand.  
  
"Fine. Here you go. Is he playing too?" Louis pointed at Harry who at the time had been studying the people around the table.  
  
"Harry? Do you know how to play poker?" Andrea asked grabbing the disks Louis held out to her.  
  
"No." He replied as he looked into her hand that grabbed the items. "Those are Oreos." He stated in disbelief. He glanced back at the center of the table where piles of Oreos were sitting. "You play with Oreos-the stakes must be high." He muttered as he rolled his eyes.  
  
"Oh shut it. You can't even play poker." She turned back to Louis and told him that Harry would be playing with her. Harry looked around at the other four members.  
  
Two were women and two were men. The woman closet to Harry looked to be about twenty-five. She had curly blond hair that stopped right around her shoulders. She had hazel eyes that were now concentrating on her cards as she bit her bottom lip and moved a card around in her hand. When she noticed Harry looking at her, she smiled warmly, a gesture that Harry returned.  
  
"Hi. I'm Anna." She held out a hand across the table for Harry to shake. He leaned over the table and gripped it briefly before sitting back down. "This is Mike," She pointed to a cheery man with slightly shaggy sandy blonde hair and pale green eyes. He waved back with one hand as he straightened a small pile of Oreos. "And this is Jacob." A man with gray hair with silver at the temples lifted a brushy eyebrow and focused his black eyes on Harry. His moustache twitched as he smiled hesitantly. "And last but not least, this is Bruce." Anna could barely stifle her laugh as Harry's eyes widened at the person named Bruce. He, or she by the looks of it, had beautiful blue eyes and creamy white skin. His/her blonde hair was long and straight but curled near the end. He/She would have been beautiful if his/her eyebrows weren't scrunched together and a pout wasn't held firmly on Bruce's lips.  
  
"What are you looking at?" A gruff voice said from Bruce's mouth. A most definitely male voice.  
  
"S-sorry." Harry stuttered as he dropped his gaze to the table.  
  
"He's just a little grumpy because we all found out he's a closet cross dresser." Louis said, causing the others to burst out into laughter.  
  
"More like he had a sex change. It's more then just clothes." Mike said as Bruce glared at him.  
  
"You're just jealous because you want a piece of this." Bruce said to Louis, standing on his chair and smacking his ass before sitting down again. Harry's eyes widened as everybody else burst out laughing.  
  
"You know you checked yourself out in a mirror before you came." Anna snorted as she laid a card down. "One, please." She said to Louis, which he promptly gave her.  
  
"Let's not forget we have an innocent here." Jacob pointed out as he got two new cards.  
  
"What? I'm not innocent?" Andrea asked with a pout.  
  
"Ha! That's a laugh. Who's your friend, anyway?" Louis said before adding. "I can't see because of these," He gestured to his shades, "And the smoke."  
  
"Why do you have the glasses?" Harry asked.  
  
"I was trying an experimental charm for night vision and I ended up with these." He whipped the glasses off and bright yellow light flooded the room. Harry's jaw dropped as he stared at his eyes that looked as though flashlights had been placed in them. Louis quickly put his glasses on.  
  
"Wow. What happened to you guys?"  
  
"Well," Mike began, "If I didn't have these legs restraints on, then I'd be bouncing off the walls-literally." Harry peered over the table and sure enough, his legs jittered under the ropes wrapped around his legs.  
  
"I have wings." Anna declared as she stood up and stretched out white bird- like wings that reached to her knees. Harry was surprised he hadn't noticed them before.  
  
Jacob cleared his throat before speaking, and said in a deep baritone voice that to Harry sounded a bit Russian, "I have three legs."  
  
Mike snickered at this and when Jacob looked at him his laughing ceased but he quickly added. "Jake is a tripod." This set everybody off again.  
  
"Better a 'tripod' then what Bruce is." He mumbled, earning a glare from Bruce and a howl of laughter from Mike.  
  
"I guess I don't need to explain that I'm a man turned women." Bruce said as he threw a cookie at Mike, which he caught skillfully in his mouth. "We still don't know who you are."  
  
"I'm Harry Potter."  
  
All noises stopped: Mike nearly choked on his cookie, Anna sat with mouth agape, both Bruce and Jake were gaping like fish out of water and Louis, finding the whole situation funny, smiled as he glanced around the table. Harry felt a blush creeping up  
  
Mike was the first to recover. "Holy Cricket! You must know my brother then. He's your dorm mate. The name Finnegan ring any bells?"  
  
"You're Seamus' brother?" Harry asked in disbelief.  
  
"Half-brother, but yeah." Mike smiled back and then started to sort out his cards.  
  
"Oh my God." Bruce whined, "Don't tell me I just slapped my ass in front of Harry Potter?" The last part came out slightly mumbled since he had placed his head in his arms and was now pressed up against the desk.  
  
"Oh don't worry Bruce. It's not like he'd recognize you anyway when you changed back." Anna teased. Bruce looked up, his face cracking into a small smile.  
  
"Let's just get back to playing. I don't fancy having to change everything back to normal when that nurse makes her rounds." Louis muttered. Everyone around the table nodded as the game began again. Two hours the game lasted and six hands that were dealt, and not one of the games played correctly or with out cheating. Mike would constantly use the tips of his toes to make the chair bounce so he could see over the cards, Anna tried using her wings to fly overhead, but was grounded by Jacob. Louis occasionally took off his sun-glasses, blinding everyone to try and peak at their cards and Bruce tried out his 'feminine' charms as a method of persuasion. Eventually the nurse came around and dragged everybody out, declaring it was a 'hospital, not a casino.'  
  
"It was nice meeting you." Jacob said as he shook Harry's hand, nodded at Andrea before disappearing through a door down the hall.  
  
Anna stepped up to him next, enveloping him into a big hug, before moving over to Andrea and doing the same. "See-ya later. Visit us if you're ever in the mood for more poker." She waved cheerily before going behind a corner.  
  
"You play a mean game of poker." Mike said to both as Bruce strapped him to a wheel chair. Straightening up, Bruce shook both their hands, gave a brief nod and began to wheel Mike out of the hallway. "Tell Seamus I said hello!" Mike called right before they disappeared into a room.  
  
Andrea grabbed Harry's hand and steered him back down the two flights of stairs back to his floor. When they ducked behind the nurses' station, Harry joined her in singing the Mission Impossible song. After only two hours, he felt his heart considerably lighten and the vibrant spark was returning to his eyes again.  
  
"Well, I better go. I don't think the staff is going to buy my excuse that I was lost again. I guess I'll see you tomorrow. Get some rest or else the doctor will have my neck." She joked lightly as she opened his door.  
  
"I thought the expression was that they'll have your head." He asked.  
  
"Well they already have that I suppose so one must move lower. I really do need to go now, but I'll see you later." With that, she turned and walked the opposite direction, her hair swishing behind her as she went farther and farther down the hallway. Harry felt his lips curve up into a grin as he went into his room and shut the door behind him. Peeling back the covers, he climbed back into his bed, grabbing a discarded charm book and propping it on his legs. He had just started reading about element shifting charms when the day's events played in his head. It had felt good to be out around people again, people who were carefree and didn't worry every moment of their life if Voldemort was plotting to kill someone close to them. People who didn't know him as intimately as his friends and surrogate family. People who were friends with Harry because of his light and darkness, not just the childhood innocence he possessed a millennium ago. Because Harry did have darkness stirring in him, waiting to bubble to the surface and control him by overpowering the light and forever blackening his soul. The last person who had known was Dorothy, and look what happened to her.  
  
Thinking back to that night, the last image she had ever seen of him was him stabbing her in the leg-fighting for control of his body. A tear slid slowly down his cheek as he remembered the night again, how it felt when Voldemort had placed the curse on him. The sensation of peace still overpowered his mind, trying to regain that feeling again. Pushing the thoughts out of his head, he glanced at the scroll that he had unconsciously brought out of his trunk. The Defense Against the Dark Arts Summer Assignment. He vaguely recalled Dumbledore assigning it after Crouch had been...disposed of.  
  
'How do mind control spells like the Imperious affect the target?'  
  
How appropriate for the thoughts he had just been having. An idea struck Harry as his eyes widened as he reached his quill and ink. The quill flew furiously across the page, and then three more as his thoughts exceeded the mandatory amount. Setting the parchment down finally, he eased the cramps out of his hand, smearing the traces of ink left behind. Well that took care of his DADA essay, he thought as he placed it on the tray that was resting in front of him. He glanced at the clock resting on his side table: it was 5:30. Feeling his head begin to get fuzzy, he snuggled down under the covers, taking a brief rest before dinner. Harry missed the quiet sound of his door creaking open as Dr. Johansson stepped inside the dimming room.  
  
The familiar golden light from his spell illuminated the room briefly, then disappearing when he flicked his wrist. Walking over, he capped the lid over his ink and rested the quill on top of a napkin so it wouldn't soak through his bed sheets. Noticing the parchment, he gingerly picked it up, whispering a lumos spell to give him some light.  
  
'How do mind control spells like the Imperious affect the target?'  
  
Curses like the Imperious are known to have control over the mind and body.  
  
Dr. Joe skimmed ahead as the beginning was all theory and the use it has and cases it was used in. At the end of the second page, began reading again.  
  
Many people have believed that this curse controls the mind, but my theory is that it is just the body reacting to the power of it. When placed under this curse, the target feels peace and happiness surrounding it so it persuades the mind into ignoring the fact that it is no longer in control of it's body. People suffering from exhaustion, physical and emotionally, are usually no longer able to counteract the curse and simply follow through with the caster's commands. It is also said that a strong will can pull the target out from under the curse's control. My theory also says that the body has to know there is something worth surviving or fighting for on the outside so it will stop itself from fighting the mind and let the targets mind gain control of it's body again. It has to feel that the peace it feels at that moment is artificial or insignificant compared to the emotions that their world has to offer. When the body finally agrees to let the body see through the haze it will notice the voice is not as soothing as before, the happiness and peace were just illusions and the heavenly like world they had drifted into is just Hell hiding behind a mask to lure it's unsuspecting victims.  
  
In awe at what this young boy had written, he stared at him before skipping ahead some more and ending at the end of the last page.  
  
The real question is not how much power it has or what happened in the past but it is what does the Imperious Curse's power limits it to. What if it isn't just solid things, like creatures and humans? What if it can control energy, manipulating it to the target's will instead of its master?  
  
Dropping the paper quickly and then righting it on the tray again, Dr. Johansson ran out of the room. He had an owl to send.  
  
********  
  
A/N: That was actually two chapters combined so it is really long. I have finally decided on the pairing of Harry/Draco.as you could probably tell because my story is now in that section.  
  
Thanks to the two people who reviewed. I think I'll update more frequently now and more regularly. I can't think of anything else to say besides that this is going to be pre-slash for a while and Draco doesn't even enter for a couple of chapters. Keep reviewing!! 


	7. Unleasing your anger

Waking up the next morning, Harry smiled as the memories of yesterday filled his mind. As he staggered to the shower, he could barely contain the grin that refused to repress itself completely. He climbed out and got dressed quickly, drying his hair that now was much longer, a little past the bottom of his ear, brushed it until it was semi- tame, then his teeth and in less then ten minutes, he hopped out of the bathroom, pulling on his sock and looking for a pair of shoes.  
  
When he found a pair of tan hiking boots he pulled them on and wriggled his toes happily, feeling the tops of his toes hit the hard material. He had forgotten what a luxury wearing shoes was. Sitting back on the bed, he waited for Dr. Johansson to enter the room. A mirror in the corner of the room attracted his attention and he quickly looked himself over.  
  
The dark circles under his eyes had vanished, his hair was clean and brushed, his green tee shirt brought out the color of his eyes and fit him well, even though he must have lost ten pounds since entering the hospital. His pants were another story. They were hanging off his hips, despite the belt that was tightened around them as far as it could go. He vaguely thought of thanking Sirius for getting him this type of pants and thought with a smile about the conversation they had had only a month and a half ago.  
  
"Sirius! Why can't I just get the baggier pants? Everyone else wears them." He pleaded in the middle of the store they were at.  
  
"True but girls appreciate the tighter ones. Let me demonstrate." He carefully selected a pair of very tight jeans off the rack and went into a dressing room to change. Harry rolled his eyes and stalked over, waiting outside the door. Sirius emerged a minute later, wearing jeans so tight it was light he was sewn in them. Sauntering over to a woman he skillfully dropped a piece of paper and bent down to grab it.  
  
To Harry's horror and amusement, the woman tilted her head to the side for a moment before turning around with a slight blush on her face. Harry had protested no more that afternoon.  
  
Cleaning off his designer glasses that he had bought over the summer, he flung himself over the bed and stared up at the ceiling for a few minutes before the familiar knock on his door drew his attention away from the ceiling tiles.  
  
"Come in!"  
  
"Hi Harry." Dr. Joe said as he pushed the door open completely. "Hey! You're all dressed." He smiled as he noticed Harry out of his hospital gown.  
  
"Yeah, well, I went two weeks without pants I think I need to maintain some of my manly dignity." He commented lightly.  
  
"And you're perky."  
  
"Not helping my manly dignity."  
  
Joe grinned back as reached into his lap coat's deep pocket and grabbed a small pill bottle. "Do you want your meds or not? I'll let you choose- might help your 'manly dignity'." He said, trying to muffle the chortle as the end.  
  
"Thanks and no. I feel better today." The doctor nodded as he performed the spell once more. While he scrolled through the information, Harry broke the silence with a question. "Have you met the hospital aid named Andrea?"  
  
His smile grew at the mention of her name. "Sure. She's been volunteering since the beginning of this summer. Not so much one for the TLC but she certainly can make you laugh. Plus she's a brilliant potions master. Works on the third floor a lot."  
  
"She's my age right?" Harry asked as the doctor moved across the room and pulled up a chair that had been by Harry's bed the afternoon before.  
  
"Yeah. Why the sudden interest in her? I think you fancy her." Joe said with an impish grin.  
  
"Or maybe it's nice to talk with someone who doesn't make jokes at inconvenient times." Harry shot back as he rolled his eyes.  
  
"Touché. So what's on your agenda today?"  
  
"I think it's time I talk to everybody again. I'm pretty sure I've already done all the recommended reading for the next year. I'm getting kind of bored and now I'm all dressed up with nothing to see, and no one to do." Harry said quickly before widening his eyes at what he said, mimicking the doctor who was also doing the same and choking.  
  
"What was that?" Joe asked evilly.  
  
Protesting, Harry muttered, "I meant nothing to do, no one to see." At the doctor's amused expression he glared before grumbling "Pervert."  
  
"Sorry. I almost forgot you're an innocent."  
  
Exploding, Harry sat up on his bed, throwing his arms in the air. "What is it with everybody? I'm not an innocent!" After a moments pause, he added, "I think I need a date." He fell back on the bed breathless, trying hard to ignore Joe's laughing as he opened the door and leaned against its frame.  
  
"So how do you want to do this? Should I send in only one or a couple people or do you want to meet them all outside or in here?"  
  
"I think you should just send a few people in. First, can you send in Sirius?" As he requested it, his eyes lit up with alarm. "You do know that Sirius is innocent?"  
  
"Of course." Fiddling with something on his robe, he unclasped a golden pin that had been hidden on his jacked. "I'm a member of the Order." Joe held up the pin so Harry could see it.  
  
"What order?" Harry asked, not removing his eyes from the pin shaped into a phoenix.  
  
"Order of the Phoenix. I assumed Dumbledore would tell you, but let me. It's a group of people fighting against Voldemort or other evil forces."  
  
"How Star Wars." Harry said, failing to stop his grin.  
  
"Yeah, I suppose. You know, your parents were members." Immediately, Harry's ears perked up as he listened to the doctor. "My parents knew them when they were in the Order. They died a little before your parents did. This is my dad's pin." He whispered sadly, as he looked at the pin held tightly in his hand.  
  
"I'm sorry." Harry whispered back. He briefly thought of the little information he knew of his own parents.  
  
"So am I." He nodded his head solemnly. "But we're not the ones who should be sorry. Voldemort will get what's coming to him." His brown eyes were set with determination as he placed a hand on Harry's shoulder. "You'll defeat him, won't you?" Harry now felt years older than Joe as he watched the older man's expression change into one so full of longing and hope that needed to be affirmed by Harry.  
  
After a few moments, Harry fought the lump down in his throat. "I'll certainly try." His voice whispered, but in his small voice was a hidden strength. The doctor perceived it and nodded his head as he made his way towards the door.  
  
"I'll get Sirius." With that, he turned around and disappeared, closing the door behind him.  
  
Harry stared dumbly at the door, his thoughts all focused on what the doctor had said.  
  
"Voldemort will get what's coming to him."  
  
"You'll defeat him, won't you?"  
  
He had meant what he said. He would try as long as his strength and body held out. The battle was no longer personal. It was vengeance for people like Joe, Sirius, Ari, and Neville and all the lives destroyed. He felt strength rush into his very bones and he felt everything become clear. He would do it and he would succeed.  
  
**********  
  
Sirius had been sitting in the waiting room, an arm wrapped reassuringly around Ari as he glanced around at Ron and Hermione to see how well they were holding up. He didn't notice the doctor walk casually in the room scanning it for Sirius' dark head among the sea of red heads. Quickly the doctor spotted him and headed over in his direction. Sirius glanced up and smiled when he saw a proud smile over his face.  
  
"Sirius. Harry's requested you." He replied shortly, as Joe stepped back to let Sirius get up.  
  
"Just me?"  
  
"Yes. Come with me please." He turned and retraced his steps. Sirius followed him quickly; ignoring the envious stares the others shot him.  
  
As Joe opened the door, he gave a brief nod to Harry before pushing Sirius inside.  
  
"Bye Joe!" Harry called. Joe sent a wave without turning around as he closed the door.  
  
"Hi Harry." Sirius spoke quietly as he shuffled his feet.  
  
"For goodness sake! I'm not going to bite. Pull up a chair." Harry exclaimed, fluffing up his pillow so he could lie back down.  
  
'I wonder if he looked in the pensieve yet.' Harry vaguely thought as Sirius moved the chair next to the bed.  
  
"So.how are you holding up?" Sirius started weakly as he wrung his hands.  
  
"Better." Was the curt reply he received from Harry.  
  
"Good. Good." They lapsed into an uncomfortable silence for a few moments before Sirius spoke again. "I see you let us back in early enough."  
  
"Well, I had time to think." Harry decided he wasn't going to make it any easier on his godfather. He knew he should forgive him, after all, it wasn't really his fault, but he had let him down that day.  
  
"In one day?"  
  
"It was a long day." The silence once again filled the room until Sirius, who at the time had his face resting on his hands, which were resting on his knees, slapped his hands down and stood up so fast the chair almost fell over.  
  
It gained no reaction from Harry.  
  
"Damn it, Harry! What is your problem? What have I done to anger you?" The older man yelled as he leaned slightly on the bed, eye level with Harry who was now gazing at him with such fury it hurt to look at him.  
  
"I don't have a problem Sirius! Why don't you just shag your girlfriend and leave me the Hell ALONE!" By the end, Harry had broke out into an all out scream as he stood up on the bed towering over Sirius and radiating power.  
  
Sirius's eyes shone with anger as he glared at Harry. "I don't know what your problem is but if you would quit being so selfish and start caring about your friends."  
  
He never finished. Harry's eyes glowed an unnatural green as his rage rose.  
  
"Selfish? And I do care about my friends-but right now you're not one of them so get out." He gritted through clenched teeth as the door flung open behind Sirius.  
  
"No! I will n-" The word died on his lips as Harry's eyes took on a completely jade color as he raised a hand, palm facing Sirius. The next thing Sirius knew, he was laying crumpled on the floor outside Harry's room as everyone in the waiting room rushed to see what the noise was. Doctor Johansson and Dumbledore broke through the stream of people and rushed into Harry's room, wands held out and curses on their tongues.  
  
"Oh my God." Sirius heard Dumbledore whisper. For a brief second he glanced at the still open door. His jaw dropped in shock and he was not unsure if it was not a hallucination. His godson hovered over the bed, energy crackling from his fingers in white blue shocks, winds surrounding him-whipping his hair back in forth along with everything else that was light enough to be swept away.  
  
"Stupefy!" He was sure Dumbledore yelled. To his amazement, along with Sirius's and Joe's, the spell simple spun around with the wind before getting absorbed into Harry's fingers, causing the energy on the tips of them to grow brighter and crackle in anticipation.  
  
"What the hell are you doing? You can't shoot spells at him! He's on a magic overload. You're making it worse!" Dr. Johansson cried as he pushed the Headmaster's wand down.  
  
"Well, what should I do? Wait for him to start a tornado?" Dumbledore yelled as the winds howled, drowning out the concerned voices in the hall.  
  
"No!" Reaching for a wand, he pointed it at his throat. "Sonorus! All available staff report to H. Potter's Room!" Within ten seconds, twelve men and women rushed into the room with such speed it had to be by magic. "Grab his arms and restrain him!" He ordered causing them all to fan out and cast a series of charms on the bed, making thick leather straps appear. Working quickly, a few men pushed Harry down on the bed, ignoring his thrashing and screaming. The others grabbed a leg or arm and securely fastened the belts. In a few seconds, Harry still struggled to move but now was only permitted a few inches. It didn't take long for him to exhaust himself and fall asleep on the mattress, sleeping as peacefully as if the ordeal had never happened.  
  
Letting the room clear, Joe and Dumbledore stepped out exhausted, Dumbledore wiping his brow and Joe clutching the doorframe. Walking calmly out into the waiting room, Dumbledore waited while Mrs. Weasley and Ari healed the cuts and bruises on Sirius.  
  
When Ron spotted Dumbledore, he angrily walked up to the old wizard, fist drawn together tightly.  
  
"What the hell happened in there?" Ron's mother looked like she was about to reprimand him for his language but changed her mind when he continued. "One minute he wants to see us all again and the next, Sirius is on the floor and Hurricane Harry is in motion!" Hermione nodded her head in agreement.  
  
"I believe Sirius knows that Mr. Weasley." Dumbledore said in a tired voice. Everyone turned to Sirius, whose eyes widened. "What exactly happened in there Sirius?"  
  
"Well, we had an argument." He started nervously.  
  
"No shit. I figured you weren't just talking Quidditch scores." Ron declared angrily.  
  
"Please refrain from the foul language and let him finish, Mr. Weasley." The headmaster calmly suggested.  
  
"Anyway, we got into this fight and the next thing I know, I'm thrown across the room by something, not Harry because he hadn't moved."  
  
"Are you sure?" It was Hermione's tiny voice that drew everyone's attention away from Sirius.  
  
"Positive. He was standing on the bed and his eyes turned this dark green and he held out his hand and the next thing I know, I'm being friendly with the tile." Sirius responded as he stood up and paced around the waiting room.  
  
"What if it was telekinesis?" At Ron's blank look, Hermione sighed before adding, "You know, moving objects with your mind? Honestly, you call yourself a wizard."  
  
"Telekinesis really isn't that common among wizards, Hermione." Mr. Weasley added as he forced his youngest son into a chair.  
  
"But it's possible, right? It makes sense because I read all about it." Ron snorted at this but a quick glare from Hermione silenced him. "If a wizard is feel strong emotions like fear, hate, or anger it can create a temporary use of being telekinetic. Who knows what he's capable of?"  
  
"But that's just like accidental magic. Those same emotions apply then too." Fred declared suddenly.  
  
"Yeah, how do we know it wasn't just some form of a levitating charm? It isn't like accidental magic is unfamiliar to Harry." George reasoned, siding with his twin.  
  
"He must have been really angry to let it happen." Ron said, "Look at the time with his Aunt."  
  
"But when he set that boa constrictor on Dudley he was upset but not to the extremes." Hermione pointed out, earning a grateful smile from Sirius.  
  
"All good points." Dumbledore broke in, "Dr. Johansson, what do you have to say in the matter?"  
  
Still glaring at Dumbledore for using the curse on Harry, he strode forward and stood closer to the group.  
  
"So far with everything taken into consideration after he arrived, my own guess is wand-less magic. Accidental magic is hard to direct with out a wand and most cases it is without a clear intent and telekinesis has too many factors, such as why it's starting, when did it start, and has he used it before. I think our answers all lie in that." He pointed to the pensieve that was hidden under a chair. "Did he ask you any questions or command you to do something before you were thrown out?" He asked to Sirius.  
  
"He said get out or something of that sort." He mumbled feebly.  
  
"See? It seemed like wand-less magic. It had a clear intent and we all know Harry is certainly powerful enough to use it."  
  
"Look, we're not getting anywhere by just surmising about this." Hermione stated, hands on her hips and her eyes hard, declaring she was ready for action. "We have all the answers in that pensieve. Why am I the only one thinking of finding them out through it?"  
  
"Maybe we should wait until he wakes up." Ginny started hesitantly.  
  
"No! This might be the only way to help Harry and I'll be damned if I'm just going to sit here while he is suffering with something he can't control just a few feet away from me. If I can help him, I'm going to do everything I can." Her eyes shone with just a sliver of fear that was quickly placed with determination as she pulled out her wand and poked the surface or the pensieve. In a moment, she was drawn into the swirling mist.  
  
Rushing forward Ron tapped his wand to the surface and was swallowed into the basin just like Hermione. Ari, Sirius, Dumbledore and Arthur followed him into the mist while the rest of the room watched with anticipation. *********  
  
Okay-another chapter is finished. Draco will enter in a couple of chapters, maybe two or three. Please review!!!! That's about all I have to say on this chapter. Thanks for reading. 


	8. Coming Together

Okay, here's the next chapter. Sorry for the crazy updates that follow no pattern because even though I have like four chapters done, I can't seem to want to update. Anyway, I want to thank my reviewers who have been really kind and to ask all of those who don't review to please do. Also, I want to thank my beta Powergirl for being such a big help. Well, that's all - enjoy!  
  
Oh, by the way, all things thought telepathically between two people that are not their own personal thoughts will be done like this: //blah//  
  
********  
He was free. Harry felt a falling sensation as he glanced around at the velvety darkness that engulfed the area. Spreading his arms out he twirled in circles like a kid catching rain on his tongue, and laughed happily at the freedom he felt. The noise was barely heard before it was absorbed into the dark.  
  
He sat down after he grew dizzy and stretched his arms out behind him. He opened his mouth to speak but when he had nothing to say, he closed it. His eyes closed for a moment, feeling peace that when he opened them again, nothing would change. That the scene would still be black as far as the eye could see.  
  
//"Harry."//  
  
Greens eyes snapped open as he scanned the area for where the voice came from, but the shadows revealed none of their secrets. After a few moments he convinced himself he imagined it and closed his eyes again.  
  
//"Harry."// It was louder this time, telling him to pay attention.  
  
"Yes?" It was barely a whisper as Harry scrambled to his feet cautiously. "Hello?" He called out when no one answered. Then the tiniest sound of padding across the dark floor had him straining his eyes to find its source.  
  
//"Hello Harry."// A man stepped out of the shadows, his dark cloak blending in with the darkness behind him. His long white hair fell in fine strands to his lower back; the image was repeated with the beard that fell to his navel. His black eyes shone like obsidian and gave off the impression that he contained knowledge and, most of all, pure power.  
  
"Who are you?" Harry asked, feeling he already knew the answer if he thought hard enough.  
  
He smiled sadly and shook his head as if Harry should have known who he was the moment he laid eyes on him.  
  
Then, without moving his lips, the elderly man's voice seeped through his head.  
  
//The Keeper of the Keys//  
  
And then the voice left. Harry's eyes widened as he stared at the 'Keeper of the Keys'.  
  
"The what?"  
  
Once again, the name or title was repeated in his head again. An image of Hagrid filtered into his mind's eyes, he banished it and concentrated on the man standing in front of him. A small smile appeared on the Keeper's face but it vanished as quickly as it had arrived.  
  
Trying to communicate the same way, Harry focused on pushing his thoughts out of his head and directing them towards the 'Keeper of the Keys.'  
  
//What's a Keeper of the Keys? //  
  
Giving a wry smile, he mind-whispered //I'm the one who will unbind your powers.//  
  
Eyes widening at this statement, Harry opened his mouth to say something but what ever he was going to say was swallowed by a bold voice, which began chanting.  
  
//Exonero Dicio//  
  
Harry looked around wildly for the chorus of voices that echoed off the man in front of him.  
  
//Dono Agnitio//  
  
A staff appeared in the old man's crinkled hands and a clear orb at the top of it began to glow a warm amber.  
  
//Echibeo Dicio!//  
  
With that said, the Keeper of the Keys slammed the dark wooden staff down and the yellowish light shot out of the orb and entered Harry's mouth, which had dropped when he saw the staff appear.  
  
All of a sudden, he felt a tingly sensation inside him that passed quickly, leaving him with a feeling of contentment that made him feel like he was home, like he was enveloped in the loving arms of a parent and just for a second, he could swear that he heard several voices whispering his name gently.  
  
He finally turned his attention back to the Keeper who was leaning on his staff and smiling kindly.  
  
"Wh-What did you do?" Harry's voice was rough from the emotions passing through him.  
  
//I made you who you are, who you're supposed to be. I opened the doors to your destiny.//  
  
As he turned to go, Harry opened him mouth and blurted out his next sentence.  
  
"Hey! You can't just reveal something like that and walk away."  
  
The man only turned around and smiled again.  
  
//You're different from the others. What would you like to know?//  
  
"Well, for starters, what did that chant mean? What keys are you the Keeper of? What powers did you give me and why?"  
  
//Is that all?//  
  
Managing to look sheepish, Harry nodded. "Well, for the moment at least."  
  
//To answer, the chant was a Latin releasing spell that unbinds your powers.// At Harry's blank look he added, //It means: Release the power Grant the knowledge Show the power.//  
  
"You have centuries to make that up and it doesn't even rhyme. You Keepers are slacking." At the man's widened eyes, Harry continued, "The Sorting Hat only has a year to create those lyrics and they all rhyme."  
  
The Keeper's face twisted into a sneer and for the first time, he spoke aloud instead of using a mind link.  
  
"Oh yes! How can we forget the Sorting Hat! The great Gryffindor pulls a hat off his head and animates it. Fifth year material! It can sing and rhyme, let's all praise the mighty Godric." By now, he was pacing furiously and Harry watched silently, amused by the whole display. "I, on the other hand, create a whole secret chamber that no one knew about. I put up all the wards, created secret passages, and helped Rowena develop the staircases that change. Where's my recognition? I ask you that. But what does that matter? Nothing! All because he made a singing HAT!!!!!" With this, he ripped off his hat and shredded it into pieces in such fury that there were still pieces falling around him a minute later.  
  
Harry took no notice of the mess and instead let his jaw hang open for the second time since he had gotten there.  
  
"You-You're Salazar Slytherin!"  
  
The man nodded and then sighed as he muttered a repairing spell that stitched his hat back together again. He placed it gently on his head before continuing.  
  
//To continue with the questions the keys that I keep are the keys that unlock your destiny. Your life is already pre-planned; I'm just opening the doors. As for your powers, you will get the powers of your grandfather and father.//  
  
"Which are?"  
  
//For me to know and to be revealed to you.//  
  
Rolling his eyes, Harry simply nodded his head. "Did my mother have any powers?"  
  
//You already have her powers.// Harry looked shocked and Salazar turned to leave. //Her wandless magic and, of course, being a parsel-tongue. Now, I must go Harry Potter. Take care my son.//  
  
With that, he walked backwards into the darkness, or maybe the darkness was moving forward.  
  
"Wait! I have more questions!" Harry yelled into the black. He tried calling again mentally but the question just echoed in his head. The darkness began to creep up on him too, and the next thing he felt was a flying sensation, infinitely better than any broom, taking him back into the light. He wouldn't remember his dream when he awoke.  
  
***********  
  
Half an hour had passed in the waiting room; all remaining visitors anxiously awaited the return of their family and friends.  
  
At an hour and fifteen minutes, the hospital doors burst open, distracting everybody from the stone basin that rested on a chair.  
  
They had just enough time to see a gurney being wheeled in and surrounded with doctors all talking furiously, mediwitches and wizards, and a young girl with black hair running after the crowd. When they turned a corner, the visitors could see a lock of platinum hair floating is a sea of red. No one noticed Snape's eyes widen in recognition and then soften at a member in the crowd.  
  
The, acting as one, they turned their heads back to the pensieve only to turn back towards the door when the Grangers rushed into the waiting room.  
  
"Where's Hermione?" Kate Granger said quickly, hands on her hips and unconsciously mimicking her daughter's determined stance. Her husband put his arm around her shoulder and opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by Kate putting up a hand and glaring. "Don't start with me Greg." Turning back to the group of people staring at her she started speaking once more, voice bordering on the edge of becoming hysterical. "I get this owl telling me that my daughter has disappeared. Now, where is she? What happened?"  
  
"It seems your daughter has foolishly decided to fall into a pensieve." Snape replied with the air of indifference. He distastefully eyed the Grangers before turning back to said object, watching the surface for any disturbance in the bowl's contents.  
  
Meekly looking around, Greg Granger quietly asked what that was.  
  
"A pensieve is place to store memories." Molly Weasley began. Then, gesturing to the basin, she continued. "These are Harry's memories."  
  
Picking up where his mother left off, Percy elaborated with the definition. "Placing memories in a pensieve make it easier to collect thoughts and string them together. Plus, they can be viewed with punctilious detail to the memory holder or to another viewer. All a wizard of witch has to do is tap the surface of the pensieve and they become drawn in until the memory is over, they use magic to leave, or the owner or another magic person pulls them out." When he finished, he turned to frown at Fred and George who were making faces behind his back.  
  
"Fascinating. So how do these.?" Greg began, but was cut off by the rippling of the pensieve. The mist spread up and around the area for a moment and then began to recede. In its place were six individuals, all clutching each other with tears running down their ashen faces.  
  
************  
  
Harry awoke to a dark hospital room. Alone. He tried to get up but felt thick bands dig into his torso, forcing him to lie back down. Harry wanted to scream for help but his throat felt like sandpaper and it hurt to force air through his trachea. He closed his eyes and tried to remember what happened.  
  
Sirius had been by to visit. He remembered being angry with him.for some reason.what was it? Oh, abandonment. Even though everything in his head had been telling him that Sirius was in no way to blame for the events that took place this summer, his heart still ached with the fact that when he needed Sirius the most his godfather had left him to be with Ari. These thoughts weren't getting him anywhere and couldn't explain why he was strapped to the bed like Neville's mother. The notion of him cracking so much that he ended up in the mental ward was quickly dismissed; even in the dim light, he could still gather that this was his room. Racking his brain for a moment, he only remembered emotions of anger, hate, and finally release. The only other time this odd gathering of feelings had ever happened was.back in the Figg house. He sighed, or attempted to but ended up convulsively swallowing in an effort to moisten his desiccated throat.  
  
His mind branched off into another line of questioning. What happened to his throat? He thought he might possibly be sick with laryngitis or something but strongly doubted it. It felt like he had been over using it and then silently cursed to himself for not remembering anything.  
  
He smartly decided not to risk another sigh and instead closed his eyes, resigning to the fact that he would have to wait until the replacement doctor for Joe came in or another hospital staff member.  
  
He didn't have to wait long.  
  
The door creaked open and a pale sliver of light shone briefly before the door was closed once again. Harry turned his head to the side and saw a small figure approach his bed and kneel on the floor next to it.  
  
"Harry?" The voice whispered meekly. It was Andrea.  
  
"Yes?" He rasped, cursing himself for forgetting about his abused throat.  
  
He heard the soft 'pop' of a cork being pulled from a bottle and opened his mouth willing. He felt the Throat Soothing Potion trickle down his throat, becoming an icy shield of protection and, at the same time, providing a mild burn as it healed the damaged tissue. He swallowed loudly, pleased with the lubrication that was once again in his throat.  
  
Turning his head towards the volunteer, he quietly spoke. "What happened?"  
  
She sighed before answering and dragged her fingers through her hair. Even in the darkened room, he could tell by her expression that it wasn't the first time she had done this gesture in frustration.  
  
"You went a little crazy. They had to restrain you before you hurt anyone, you're magic kind of went wonky. I heard your friend Ron describe it as 'Hurricane Harry.'" She stood up to grab a chair that she collapsed weakly.  
  
Harry closed his eyes tightly before whispering back a response. "And did I? Hurt anybody, that is." She looked up in consternation and he felt tears well up into his eyes at the thought of what he had done. "What did I do?"  
  
"Don't worry." She reassured him gently. "You just threw Sirius across the room and into the hallway and then knocked out a witch with all of your struggling. They'll be fine but they'll have a nasty headache."  
  
"That's good." They lapsed into silence for a while and Harry took the time to study Andrea's face. She was looking at the ceiling with her palms pressed into the hollows of her eyes attempting to push away sleep. Her mouth was set in a frown. Overall, she was the epitome of exhaustion, physical and emotional. He skimmed over her clothes and saw the arm lightly streaked with a brown stain. He hoped it wasn't blood.  
  
Since Harry had entered the magical world, there seemed to be no blood anywhere. Death had an absence of it leaving the corpses unblemished. Hospitals were sickening white with no trace of the red life force in it or on it. Dozens of potions existed to evaporate it; Harry knew this as he himself had used quite a few. That's why Voldemort's torture techniques had surprised him at first; it was such a.muggle.way to kill someone with knifes. Considering every person he had every seen died, Quirrell being burned to death and turned to ashes, Dorothy with blood pouring out of the dozens of holes in her body, Cedric and his spread-eagle form on the boundaries of the graveyard, the Killing Curse seemed almost civilized. He drew himself from his thoughts and focused on his visitor once again.  
  
"What's wrong?"  
  
Andrea removed her palms from her eyes to reveal a tear-streaked face that glistened from the shard of light that filtered through the door.  
  
"What?"  
  
Harry repeated his question and waited for an answer.  
  
"A friend of mine." She trailed off and Harry waited patiently for her to continue. ".got hurt very badly." She finished weakly, before turning her head to the door and staring at it as if was transparent. "He's in this hospital now. I guess I'm just worried. They said he's going to be fine, but." She trailed off and returned her gaze to Harry who nodded his head with understanding and held commiseration in his darkened eyes.  
  
Taking a deep breath, Harry lowered his head back onto his pillow and closed his eyes tiredly. "You don't have to stay. Go to him if you're worried."  
  
"I'm also worried about you." She said, smiling sadly.  
  
"I'm fine. From the looks of it, he needs your company more than I do."  
  
Andrea opened her mouth to argue that statement but closed it as her eyes shone devilishly. "Come with me." She whispered softly.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Come with me." She repeated more boldly. "We can see him together. I can tell you're itching to get out of those restraints."  
  
True enough, Harry had been fiddling with the silver buckles and had been twisting under the belts to escape the chaffing that his uncovered upper arms were now victims of.  
  
"Deal."  
  
She rose and moved closer to the bed and began to unbuckle one strap at a time until all four bands were gone and Harry could stretch his stiff muscles, trying to accommodate them to their new freedom.  
  
"Thanks. Let's go." He stood to leave but stopped when he noticed Andrea wasn't following.  
  
"You might want to put on some pants." She said lightly, trying to hold back a giggle.  
  
Sure enough, the clothes he was wearing before were now gone and in their place was the breezy hospital gown. Before he could reply, the image of Archie at the World Cup came to mind.  
  
*I like a healthy breeze 'round my privates, thanks.*  
  
Harry bit back a laugh and proceeded to get dressed, pulling on the same clothes he had worn earlier that day.  
  
"Okay, now let's go." Harry whispered as Andrea pulled open the door.  
  
They crept stealthily through the hall, going in the opposite direction of the mental ward. Andrea led the way and then stopped at two heavy metal doors, which she pushed open for both of them and let it close quietly behind them.  
  
The corridor was dimly lit and Harry wondered briefly where the light was coming from if not from electricity. They walked briskly down the hall before stopping at a door near the end of the hallway.  
  
Once they were inside, Harry could see it was similar to his room. There was a bed in the middle, a chair off to the side with a table but instead of the large window, there was a solid wall lined with machines; from the looks of it and the rhythmical hums and beeps, the equipment seemed to be muggle.  
  
Harry focused his eyes on the small figure shrouded in crisp white sheets that were covering his forearms. There was no movement besides the labored rising and falling off the torso. His eyes, for it was apparent it was a male, were shut peacefully and bold red lips were defined strongly, partly from the boy's pale complexion and partly from the ordeal that he had been through that probably came with a great loss of blood.  
  
It had only taken Harry an instance to recognize the boy as Draco Malfoy, his fair skin and white blonde hair served as an easy identification. He turned his head questionably to Andrea but she had already moved across the room and grabbed the blue chair over towards the bed.  
  
As quiet as she tried to be, the scrapping alerted the bedridden patient whose eyes shot open and revealed misty silver eyes that glanced around the room for the source of the noise.  
  
"Hello?" His voice cut through the silence, making both of the visitors jump in alarm. "Andrea?" His voice rasped quietly as he struggled to breathe.  
  
"Hey. How are you feeling?" She asked gently as she perched herself on the edge of his bed and pushed the pale locks that had fallen across his face behind his ear. The dim light from the hall illuminated his hair and created a halo effect around his head. Harry felt his breath catch. The noise alerted the two on the bed and simultaneously they looked towards him.  
  
"Potter?" He asked tentatively as he tried to make out his shape.  
  
"Malfoy." Harry spoke more calmly and dragged his eyes away from his hair to look into the other boy's dark eyes.  
  
"What are you doing here?" Draco managed to choke out before being consumed by a coughing fit that rattled his body. Harry noticed that there was a thick white band wrapped around Malfoy's neck and he quietly pondered what it was.  
  
"In the hospital?" Harry asked, replying to his question.  
  
"No. My room."  
  
"Visiting, I guess."  
  
Andrea flitted her eyes between the two and was about to reply but instead looked at her watch that was glowing a red color that it hadn't in Harry's room.  
  
"Oh, I need to go. I'll be back in a moment. Don't move you two." With that, she rushed out the door.  
  
Harry looked around, wondering what to do with himself. Draco sighed and waved his hand in a motion, indicating him to sit down. Harry walked the few steps and lowered himself inelegantly into the chair and leaded back against it.  
  
"So.what happened to you?" Harry asked, trying to make conversation until their mutual friend returned.  
  
The blonde boy snorted humorlessly before dully answering. "I got hurt. What about you?"  
  
"Same." They lapsed in silence for another moment. "How long have you been here?"  
  
"What's with the small talk, Potter? We're not friends and simply because we know the same person does not make me glad to see you. Now, bugger off." With that, he rolled over onto his side, away from Harry.  
  
"Ungrateful git." Harry mumbled angrily as he folded his arms across his chest and stared into Draco's back.  
  
"Stop staring at me." Draco replied a minute later, still not turning around.  
  
"I'm not staring at you."  
  
"Yes, you are."  
  
"No, I'm not. You're delusional, they must have put you on pain medication."  
  
"I can feel your eyes on me, Potter." This time, he flipped around and was now scowling at Harry.  
  
"Yeah, well, now I'm looking at you." Harry rolled his eyes, not noticing Draco doing the same.  
  
"Then stop it, Boy-Who-Can't-Keep-His-Eyes-To-Himself."  
  
"That was the longest 'Boy-who-something' I have ever heard. I think you're loosing your touch, Ferret Boy."  
  
His scowl deepened. "What are you doing here anyways?"  
  
"In the hospital?" Harry replied innocently, purposely parroting their earlier words.  
  
"Aurgh. I hate you." He grabbed a pillow and attempted to throw it, but, because of his weakened state, it flew two feet before plopping to the ground at Harry's feet.  
  
"Nice throw." He scoffed as he picked up the pillow and placed it back behind Draco's head.  
  
His eyes narrowed at that gesture. "I don't need your help, Potter." He spat before going into another coughing fit. Secretly, Harry was surprised he had lasted this long without the violent coughing. "Oh, just kill me now." He muttered weakly as he flopped back on his bed, drained of all of his energy.  
  
"Oh? Like this?" Harry asked naively. Harry quickly grabbed the pillow from behind Malfoy's back and placed it over his head in one fluid motion. Draco sputtered and thrashed his legs wildly, trying to get free. After about ten seconds, Harry removed the pillow and placed it back behind his head. He looked down to see a pink-faced Draco who was panting heavily.  
  
"You." Wheeze. "Are the." Cough. "Devil, Potter." He closed his eyes again, trying to block out Harry's smiling face.  
  
"You did say to kill you now."  
  
"I didn't think you'd do it!" Draco sputtered indignantly.  
  
"Oops. You should be careful what you ask for then."  
  
At that moment, Andrea came bursting into the room again.  
  
"I'm so sorry. They needed help on the Third Floor." She looked at both of them and smiled brightly. "You know, from the way that everybody talks about you guys, I half expected to find one of you dead." She missed Draco's pained look and continued. "I'm glad you can be civilized."  
  
"Like Potter could ever do anything civilized." Draco snorted, "Look at the company he chooses to socialize with: the Mudblood and the pack of Weasels."  
  
Harry jumped to his feet at the last statement but was pushed back into his chair by Andrea who was staring at Draco sternly.  
  
"Cut it out Draco. I know you don't believe half the stuff that comes out of your mouth." She scolded him and perched herself back on his bed again.  
  
"I might respect Granger," Draco spit out the name and held a look of distaste on his face before continuing. "She is at least intelligent, even for a Mud-" He stopped and scowled when Andrea nudged him in the ribs. "Fine, Muggle-born. But Weasley has no redeeming qualities. No talent, no brains, not even any looks. He's nothing more than a penniless lackey with a large staff jammed up his-"  
  
"Watch it." Harry growled.  
  
Draco smiled widely and was about to retort when he broke out coughing yet again. Andrea looked as if she just remembered something and reached into her pocket to pull out a small vile, which she offered to Draco who accepted it gratefully.  
  
"Thanks." His voice had returned to its silky hiss and lost the coarse sound it held moments ago.  
  
"Welcome. Now, how are you feeling?"  
  
"Better. Now I only feel like I've been run over by hippogriffs instead of dragons." He said, scowling at Potter for seeing him in his weakened condition. "What's Potter doing here anyway?" He said this to Andrea, hoping to get a straight answer from her.  
  
"In the hospital?" She questioned distractedly as she checked his pulse and stared at one of the machine's screens.  
  
Draco's eyes widened and Harry bit back a laugh. "What is this, a conspiracy?" The blonde boy asked as he stared at Andrea.  
  
"Hmm. What?" Draco gesticulated for her to ignore the last remark as she finished whatever she was checking him for.  
  
"So, how do you two know each other anyways?" Harry asked, once he noticed he was being left out.  
  
The two on the bed exchanged glances before looking back at Harry. "Cousins." Andrea said at last.  
  
Draco rolled his eyes and in an almost sociable way added, "Not really. We just pretend we are." At Harry's odd look, Draco looked to Andrea who sighed and began to tell the small story.  
  
"Our mother's were friends in school and our fathers became friends through our mothers." She didn't notice Draco flinch at one of the words in her previous sentence, but Harry did and he planned to file it away for later uses.  
  
"I don't have any real cousins so since I was little, her and her brother and sister have become my cousins."  
  
"Do any of your siblings go to Hogwarts?" Harry asked, secretly pleased at how friendly the conversation was.  
  
"My brother went for about two years but transferred to Salem's Magic Academy in America. He graduated two years ago. My twin sister goes to Beauxbatons."  
  
"Oh, so are you going to stay there or transfer to Hogwarts?" Draco's eyes took on a curious look when Harry posed the question.  
  
"Stay." She replied sadly. "I don't think I could ever leave my sister. Twins always have a stronger connection, it'd be too hard to leave her."  
  
"I don't think the school could handle you anyway." Draco replied with a laugh, "We already have the Weasley twins and add you to the mix.I think Snape would go into cardiac arrest." Both of them laughed and Harry suddenly felt a longing for his own friends.  
  
"You're a prankster like the twins?" Harry asked suddenly, not picturing her laying Dung Bombs along the corridors of her school like the red headed mischief-makers did at Hogwarts.  
  
"Of course." She replied with her eyes sparkling. "My sister excels in charms while I am the youngest Potion Master alive. We make a good team. If only Draco was there." She said with a sigh, "He's the master at hexes and curses. We'd have been unstoppable."  
  
They all laughed lightly at the thought of the French school being terrorized by three teens.  
  
"Do you think you'll come to Hogwarts this year?" Draco asked hopefully.  
  
"Only if I get suspended again. Seriously, teachers have no sense of humor."  
  
As the two bickered happily, Harry took the time to think about Ron and Hermione. Andrea seemed to be as bright as Herm was but she was much more mischievous than his fellow Gryffindor. And Draco was just the opposite of Ron; the Slytherin was rich, intelligent, aristocratic, polished and an only child compared to Ron with the over crowded house, the empty vault and the general chaos that was found in the Burrow. Still, his redheaded friend was much warmer and more loud and open than Draco Malfoy was. If you stuck the four in the room together, there would probably be no survivors.  
  
"Sure." Draco drawled, startling Harry from his trance.  
  
"I could so out do the Weasley twins!" Andrea countered.  
  
"I don't know." Harry said, rejoining the conversation. "I mean, Fred and George created all of their pranks, which were so successful that they're going to start selling them."  
  
"Sometimes the best pranks don't involve magic." Draco countered, looking very mischievous for a few seconds before adding almost wickedly, "Remember last summer at the Farewell Dinner up at the Manor?"  
  
"Oh yes." Andrea was now smiling broadly and the two broke out into gales of laughter about some prank.  
  
"What happened?" Harry asked curiously.  
  
"Well," Draco began, rubbing his hands together evilly, "Right after school let out, Andrea, myself and Allison. her twin sister...." He added at Harry's blank look. "We floo-ed to London and stopped at some shop and purchased this huge fake pearl."  
  
Andrea picked up right where he ended. "So, right before the Farewell feast, we snuck into the kitchen and planted the pearl into one of the oysters that they were serving for dinner, not only to our families, but half the ministry."  
  
"At the dinner," Draco continued, "The three of us."  
  
"And my brother Randolph." She added.  
  
"Right. The four of us are just sitting there waiting to see who got the pearl.oh; we couldn't have planned it better. It was in that imbecile Fudge's oyster." At this point, all three burst into laughter. "And.w-we watched my p-parents and Fudge figh-fighting over the oyster until they were about ready to hex each other!" He managed to say through his laughter as tears began streaming down Draco's face as he clutched his stomach, laughing so hard that it looked like he might fall off the bed.  
  
"A-and then R-randy stands up and s-says that it was just a p-prank. Everyone's face was so red!" Now Andrea couldn't contain her laughter and she collapsed on the bed, giggling furiously.  
  
"No one talked for the rest of the night!" Draco said as he got his laughter under control, only to burst out laughing again at the mental picture.  
  
Harry felt his face turn red as he rolled around in his chair laughing so hard he thought his spleen might burst.  
  
[A/N: I didn't create this prank, Dr. Seuss actually did it. The man's my idol.]  
  
"Oh my God.what did your parents say?" Harry managed to gasp out between laughs.  
  
"My father didn't do anything. He hates Fudge as much as I do." Andrea said.  
  
"I was given a stern reprimand by Father, but I think they all were more amused than anything else."  
  
They stayed up taking a bit more but Andrea eventually shuffled Harry off to bed at a quarter to one.  
  
"Bye, Drake. We'll visit you tomorrow." Andrea said and kissed his cheek. "Come on Harry."  
  
"I'll be right there." She shrugged her shoulders but waited for him outside the door. "Look, I know you said you don't like me, but after tonight, maybe we could be friends?" Harry finished a little unsurely and stared at his shoes.  
  
Draco frowned before answering. "This won't mean I'll become a Muggle lover like your friend Weasley." He warned Harry who stopped looking at his shoes and looked at Draco gleefully.  
  
"'Course not." He held out a hand nervously. "Friends?" He held his breath as he waited for Draco to grab the offered hand.  
  
"Maybe in the future." Draco added with a small smile as he shook Harry hand decisively.  
  
"That's all I'm asking. I'll see you later, I guess." Harry turned to leave but suddenly wished he could have kissed him good-bye like Andrea had. The thought stopped him briefly, but he dismissed it with a shake of his head and continued walking. ***************  
  
So ends another chapter. Please, I ask you again to review whether you decide to flame it or not. 


	9. Campfire Tales

The next afternoon found Andrea once again on the third floor handling various potion ingredients and carelessly tossing them into a smoking black cauldron.  
  
"Ooh! Look at it bubble!" She chanted along with another voice coming from the doorframe. She turned to see Draco leaning against the door in a powder blue bathrobe covering blue striped pajamas.  
  
"Hey. What are you doing here?"  
  
"Got bored. Decided to pay my favorite cousin a visit." He shrugged and stepped into the room.  
  
"I'm only your favorite because I load you up on potions. Highly illegal ones too, if I might add."  
  
He shrugged again and pushed himself down on a chair next to the cauldron.  
  
Draco began to pick up a variety of bottles and peer through them, trying to figure out the contents. "What are you making?"  
  
"Oh, this and that. De-Skelo-Gro." She grabbed another bottle, and looked at it's contents the same way Draco had done and with a look of indifference, uncorked it and threw the contents into the potion.  
  
"What's the point?"  
  
She pondered this for a moment, not really sure why she had gotten up and decided to create this potion. "Don't know. It could remove a sixth finger or toe. Or help those Barbie-wannabe's achieve their goal by letting them lose a rib or two."  
  
He nodded sagely. "Friend to our overly digit-ed brothers and sisters and the anorexic community."  
  
"That's me." She nodded and picked up a ladle and began stirring.  
  
"So.how'd you end up with Potter?" He asked nonchalantly, picking at the label of moose bile.  
  
"I was bored. How else do I ever get into any situation?" She smiled and looked to her 'cousin', surprised that he wasn't smiling as well. "What's wrong?"  
  
"Nothing." He paused for a moment. "Do you believe we ever miss our chances?"  
  
"At what?"  
  
"I don't know. Happiness, riches, a family life, friends."  
  
Andrea frowned a bit before answering. "I'm not sure. Some people believe in fate; what happens will happen if it's meant to. Some believe that God plans our lives and this is just the way our lives turn out and some people believe we make our own destiny. I guess it's just the way you look at things."  
  
"What do you believe?"  
  
"A little of all three." She smiled and put down the bottles to speak directly to Draco. "Things happen for a reason but I don't believe that we can't alter it. Nothing is set in stone. You of all people should know that." She gave him a knowing look, which he nodded at.  
  
"Potter asked me to be his friend last night." Andrea raised an eyebrow but didn't respond. "It was like deja-vu. I already told you about what happened in Malkin's. Do you think I missed my chance the first time?"  
  
"If you did, then your chance has come back to bite you in the ass." Draco chuckled appreciatively. They sat for a moment in silence.  
  
"I think I want to be his friend." He answered in a small voice.  
  
"What's stopping you?"  
  
Draco gave her a wry grin, "Nothing now." He got up off the stool and walked briskly to the door but Andrea's voice called him right before he left.  
  
"Room 412." She said, not looking up from her work. "Just for future reference."  
  
********  
  
"Hey, Pot-" Draco left off as he swung the door open to Harry's room and gaped at what the black haired boy was doing.  
  
Harry turned around to greet him before turning back to the wall in front of him.  
  
"W-what are you doing?" Draco managed to spit out as he watched Harry move his arms in graceful strokes over the wall.  
  
"Sketching." And he was.  
  
Harry had gotten up at seven that morning with an idea in his head. The room he was in seemed awfully drab, why not shake it up a bit? His art supplies, purchased by Dorothy and loved deeply by Harry, were still in his trunk, floating on the top of a sea of black Hogwarts robes.  
  
He had intended to just draw in his sketchpad and hang the pictures on the wall, but when he gathered the book, he realized that every page had been filled. He flopped on the chair in frustration and ended up facing a large white wall. The idea just stemmed from there and for the last five hours he had been sketching a scene of Hogwarts from a first year's perspective on the first day of school.  
  
He now was only a quarter finished. He had the lake done, detailed with the ripples from the boats disturbing the glassy sheen of it's surface. He scattered the small little rowboats, each with their glowing lamp and four students, across the lake with some pulling ahead of the others and already docking at the shore and some still hidden under the veil of moss. Harry had jokingly added a girl with messy brown hair, a boy with red hair, another boy with a frog and one with messy dark hair in one boat. If you looked hard enough, one person on the bank from an already docked boat had silvery hair slicked back and stood proudly even though he was dwarfed by two lugs on either side of him.  
  
"Oh, wow." Draco breathed out as he stepped closer to the wall and trailed his fingers briefly over the light graphite drawings.  
  
"Thanks, I think." Harry smirked as he grabbed a chair to help him reach the peak of one of the Hogwarts' towers. Harry paused to think for a second and then turned to Draco. "How'd you get in here anyway, Malfoy? I thought I requested no visitors."  
  
"You did." Draco said distantly, still staring in awe at the picture before finally noticing his little portrait. "Hey, is that me?"  
  
Harry nodded impatiently. "Yes. Now answer my question."  
  
Draco tore his eyes away and smirked at Harry, which infuriated him for some reason. "I charmed my way in. Malfoys are very.persuasive."  
  
"Really?" Harry settled for a look of disbelief since he couldn't manage lifting one eyebrow like Draco and Andrea could.  
  
"Yes. Really." The blonde hair boy paused for a moment. "I am part veela, you know." He smiled as Harry's eyes bugged out at that admission.  
  
"No, I didn't know that. How much?"  
  
"Little less than half. I've got some elf thrown in too so I'm probably more creature than human, which disturbs me to no end." Draco shuddered.  
  
Harry stared before chuckling lightly. "All this time you've gone on and on about how purebloods were better than everyone else when you are barely even human."  
  
"Laugh it up Potter but I'd rather be a wizard/elf/veela mix than a ginger haired Weasel." He sneered crossing his arms and perching on the edge of Harry's bed.  
  
Harry shook his head and faced the wall again. "Don't say that. Ron and his family are good people."  
  
"The Weasleys are uncultured sods."  
  
"That's not true. What about Percy? He was Head Boy. And so was Bill and Charlie's in Romania working with dragons."  
  
"Know who else works with dragons? Your pal Hagrid, and what's he? An expelled unlicensed wizard with no regard for laws or other people's health."  
  
Harry whirled around to face him, eyes flashing deep green. "You don't have any idea what you're talking about. The Weasleys may be poor and Hagrid may be a little wild but at least they aren't prejudiced and Voldemort's right hand man and teaching their children the dark arts like they're just parlor tricks!"  
  
Draco's eyes flashed with something unrecognizable before turning a steely gray, masking off all emotions besides hatred. He spoke through gritted teeth to Harry and clenched his hands into tight fists, leaving crescents marks against the palm of his hand from his nails.  
  
"Don't you dare talk about my father that way. You don't know him and you certainly don't know me. He might be prejudiced against the mudbloods but don't you even think of telling me that the Weasleys aren't as biased as you accuse my family of being."  
  
"What?! That's not-"  
  
"Yes, it is Potter. It is true. What's the first thing you heard about the Slytherins or me?"  
  
Harry remembered what Ron had said to him the very first day they met.  
  
There isn't a witch or wizard who hasn't gone bad in Slytherin.  
  
Harry didn't say anything but Draco could tell from his face.  
  
"Exactly. You heard we were all evil Dark Magic users. You think Dumbledore didn't use Dark Magic to defeat Grindewald? And on that subject, did you know that Grindewald wasn't a Slytherin? He was a Ravenclaw and about a fourth of his followers were Gryffindors." At Harry's shocked look he added smugly, "See? Gryffindors aren't the epitome of righteousness. Look at Peter Pettigrew. He was a Gryffindor and look at what a little rat he turned out to be." Harry looked up sharply at the mention of his name.  
  
"How did you know Pettigrew was the traitor?"  
  
Draco gave Harry a look that said 'Do you think I'm stupid or something?' "Potter, you're talking to me. Death Eaters visit the house regularly. This summer I've had tea with Voldemort and I've talked to him about school. He once asked me about girls! Which I told him that if I had to marry Parkinson, I'd wait till after the wedding, load up on champagne and promptly throw myself off a cliff to a fate more merciful than seeing Pansy naked."  
  
Harry cracked a small smile but it was hidden from Draco as he bowed his head in shame.  
  
"I'm sorry." He whispered ruefully, lifting his bright green eyes to meet smoky gray ones. "You're right, but what the Weasleys are against is the fair, right thing in this particular situation."  
  
"The side you're on is always the right side."  
  
"Even so, you don't have to insult Ron like that."  
  
Draco snorted at this and got up to lean against the wall next to Harry. "And what happens when he insults me? You going to defend my honor?"  
  
Harry blushed and studied the ground intently. "I'll work on Ron and you. I won't have two of my friends insulting each other." That statement filled Draco with pride for a moment before he countered it.  
  
"You're getting ahead of yourself Potter. We're not friends yet." Draco spoke this in a slightly teasing manner.  
  
Harry's mouth was set in a small frown, smashing his eyebrows together in thought. "And when will we be?"  
  
"When we can have one conversation without fighting over my family's morals or what I think and believe just because it differs from you."  
  
Harry nodded in consent and picked up his pencil he dropped in the heat of the fight. He poised the tip against the wall, ready to make the graceful curve of the front door at Hogwarts.  
  
"Hey, Malfoy?"  
  
Draco turned to face him only to see green eyes roll back into Harry's head and the black haired boy's legs buckling under him, dragging the pencil against the wall down to the baseboard where Harry's crumpled body lay.  
  
At the other end of the hospital, Andrea fell to the floor to, dragging a cauldron full of De-Skelo-Gro with her.  
  
************  
  
"Oh, it was horrible!" Hermione wailed as she flung herself at her parents, enveloping them in a hug. The three of them relocated to a chair and sat with Hermione as she sobbed on their shoulders.  
  
"Arthur..." Mrs. Weasley began but was cut off as her husband wrapped his arms around her waist and buried his face in her hair. At a loss of what to do, she just patted his back gently. Ron took one step and fell to the ground. Fred and George rushed over, followed by Ginny and Percy. They wrapped their arms around him and Percy grabbed one of his hands and squeezed them in comfort. Bill and Charlie cam next, piling on top of Fred and George and Ginny, giving the whole group a hug.  
  
Sirius made it to a chair but collapsed in exhaustion and buried his face in his hands, murmuring something in audible over and over. Ari sat next to him and tried to place a reassuring hand on his shoulder but he flinched away. The Auror bit her lip and tried to hide her hurt. She felt too tired to cry; her grief was beyond tears anyway.  
  
Albus simply walked to the end of the hallway and stared at Harry's door. Little did he know, or did anyone know, that Harry had just snuck out moments ago with a certain aid, and was now being led downstairs.  
  
The entrance to the waiting room burst open and Remus Lupin walked in, his tattered robes swirling behind him.  
  
He took one look at everyone's faces and knew he had missed something; he could smell their grief in the air. He spotted Sirius rocking back and forth on the edge of his chair and walked over to his oldest friend. Ari looked ready to stop him but Remus brushed past her and sat down in the chair next to Sirius, prodding the unstable man in the shoulder.  
  
Sirius looked up through a glossy layer of tears before trying to move away from the werewolf, but Lupin would have none of that. He wrapped his arms around the other man and held him tightly as Sirius beat his arms against him in an attempt to get free. He eventually realized he couldn't and finally broke down, weeping into Remus' chest.  
  
"This may be a stupid question, but what happened?" Remus' voice cut through the crowd and everyone looked up to face him  
  
"They went into Harry's pensieve." McGonagall said neutrally, as she had no idea what had happened.  
  
"Well, what did you see?"  
  
Hermione spoke first, lifting her head from her father's shoulder.  
  
"Oh, Professor. It was horrible. There was so much blood, so much blood." Hermione trailed off and her mother pressed her daughter's head to her shoulder in hopes of giving her some comfort.  
  
They all turned to Ron whose head was barely visible in the pile of Weasleys on the floor.  
  
"He's my best mate. He's my best mate." Ron looked around at his family in panic. "I-we-someone should go to him! What if something's wrong? He needs friends!" Ron looked to the point of panic and struggled to escape the hold of his brothers and sister but they wouldn't yield. Instead he collapsed against them in tears. "I'm his best friend! I should've helped him! I-I.should be there. He's all alone." Percy whispered something soothing to Ron and the red head calmed down a bit and buried his head in George's shoulder.  
  
"Arthur?" Remus tried, trying to get some answer from anyone.  
  
The balding man lifted his head and stared straight into Remus' eyes. "I think of that boy like a son. I'd never ever want to see any of my children in pain but every time I close my eyes." His voice dropped to a whisper, "Everytime, I see that scene and it will be burned into the back of my mind until the day I die." He spoke up again. "I don't know what I saw but I saw Voldemort murder Dorothy Figg and then I saw him harm Harry. That bastard better watch his step because he now has the clan of Weasleys on his tail out for his blood." Every member of his family nodded in agreement, Ron more vehemently than anyone.  
  
"Sirius?" The werewolf tried again, once he realized that the Weasley family would talk no more that night.  
  
"Moony.He's my godson. I should have protected him. I should have been there." Remus tried to soothe him but to no avail; Sirius simply wouldn't be stopped. "I should have been the one to be hurt. I should've been the one stabbed with a knife, not Harry! None of this should have ever happened to my godson!" He roared in frustration, only in his seat because of Remus' tight grip on him. "James and Lily wanted me to protect him. I made a promise to James that nothing bad would ever happen to Harry as long as he had me around with him. I'm so sorry James!" Sirius flung himself on the ground, kneeling and praying to both God and James for forgiveness. Remus let him go and looked to Ari who was staring at Sirius.  
  
"Ari?" Her head whirled around to meet Remus'. "What happened?"  
  
She took a deep shuddering breath before starting. Ari could collect herself like no other in the room. She had seen the horrors on her job and learned early that it was important to report anything and everything in a dispassionate voice.  
  
"It started out with them playing cards and then Voldemort bursts in with some lackeys. All masked, I couldn't recognize them. They tied them up and Harry watched my mother get tortured. He pleaded with them to stop and eventually they did but not after using over a dozen knifes on my mother. Voldemort moved on to Harry next and then used the Cruciatius curse on him. After he was done toying around with him, Voldemort cast the Imperious curse on him and ordered him to kill my mother." She heard a few gasp and looked up to see McGonagall being held up by Snape after nearly fainting and Ginny gripping Ron's hand so tight she could see her knuckles turning white. "Harry couldn't fight it off, not completely."  
  
Remus took a deep breath before responding. "What happened?"  
  
"He stabbed her in the thigh instead. Voldemort finished her off." Her voice shook at the end and she looked to Dumbledore for help.  
  
The elderly wizard picked up where she left off. "Harry caught him off guard and stabbed him, but it did nothing." Hr bowed his head before lifting his eyes towards his teaching staff. "Voldemort had become immortal again." He heard gasps from the other wizards and witches around him but he continued the story. "Then Voldemort branded him with the Dark Mark." Once again, gasps of surprised, shock and disgust reverberated around the room followed by a cry from the Weasley pile on the floor.  
  
"Son of a bitch!" All heads turned towards the person in surprise. Percy.  
  
"Right on!" George shouted as Bill and Charlie stared in shock at their younger brother.  
  
"Never heard truer words in my life." Fred added with a grin, shaking his head at his parents' expressions. "But what happened next?"  
  
After the brief moment of hilarity, Ron seemed to have regained his wits and spoke up first. "Then they dueled."  
  
"Harry couldn't have had his wand the whole time. Did You-Know-Who give it back?" Ginny asked shyly.  
  
Ron shook his head. "No. It was strange. You-Know-Who shot the killing curse at him but then Harry just raised his hands, said 'Imperio' and the curse rebounded." Ron seemed to be in awe of his best friend at the moment.  
  
"But not for good." Snape said, answering the question that many had been asking themselves. "He hasn't even changed to the spirit form. I assume that Potter merely banished him. Where, I can not say." Dumbledore nodded his head in thought.  
  
"Well, if there is nothing more to do, I would like to retire to bed. Minerva, Severus, Hagrid, are you three coming?" Both nodded their heads and three glided out of the room while Hagrid clomped as noiselessly as possible.  
  
"Come on, Hermione. Let's go home." Her mother insisted, pulling at her daughter's sleeve now that they were standing up again.  
  
"No. I'm staying." With firm resolve, she sat back down in the chair and crossed her arms across her chest.  
  
"So am I." Ron walked over towards his other best friend and took the seat next to her. Hermione shot the red head a grateful smile.  
  
Mrs. Weasley sighed in defeat and took her seat again while pulling out her knitting and beginning to work on her famous Weasley sweaters.  
  
Arthur kissed his wife on the cheek before standing to go. "Boys, do you have work tomorrow?" Bill, Percy and Charlie nodded their heads and they both stood to leave with their father.  
  
Ginny had a look of indecision but finally sat next to Hermione and took her had reassuringly.  
  
"Let's go Sirius." Remus grabbed the protesting man and then stunned him to get him to come along peacefully. "Ari, would you like to stay at my cottage tonight also?"  
  
"No, I should get back to head quarters and file this report. Thanks for the offer." With that, she dissapperated.  
  
Remus bowed his head to the remaining Weasleys and left.  
  
They were all left to their thoughts. **********  
  
Thanks for everyone who reviewed and I am sorry to say that this will be slash. I've probably lost half my readers but I need some plot and if I knock it out then I have war and evilness, which bores me. But don't worry; I will not fluff my story and no romance will happen for quite some time, after all, this is only like a prequel. Keep reviewing! Oh and thanks to my beta who has finally sent this chapter back. 


	10. End of Innocence

First, I want to thank all of my reviewers. I've never gotten so many for just one chapter and they were all so helpful and encouraging so I added a little extra for this chapter. Now that my beta has finally given a good part of my story back (P.S. powergirl, thanks for looking it over.) I think I will be able to update more frequently as I have about 90 pages ready to go. Thanks again and keep reviewing!  
  
**********  
  
The moment Harry had fainted, Draco had run off to a nurses' station and snagged the first one he could find.  
  
Together, they ran to room 412 where Harry still laid pressed against the cold tile.  
  
The nurse crouched beside him and put a hand on his flushed forehead. "Oh, he's burning up. Wingardium Leviosa!" He rose in the air and gently lowered the unconscious boy to his bed. "Ennervate!" Harry's eyes opened slowly and he let out a low moan of pain. "Can you hear me?"  
  
"Yes." Harry tried to say but it came out as a hiss as he shifted himself around the bed.  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"It's your magic de-tox. It-" She would have continued but another wave of pain shot through Harry, making him arch his back and bite his lip to stifle a scream. The nurse quickly shooed Draco out and then called the replacement doctor in.  
  
Draco wandered down the hallway lost in his thoughts. He was so caught up in them he failed to notice a medi-witch running behind him and calling his name until she grabbed his elbow and dragged him down a corridor back to his room.  
  
"Mr. Malfoy, where have you been?" She said with a huff as she pushed him back into bed and muttered the personal information spell. She didn't wait for an answer before replying, "The staff has been at its wits end, what with you and Mr. Potter running around here at all hours. What would other hospitals think!"  
  
"That you're not putting those restraints to use as often as you should?" Draco muttered while glaring at the nurse.  
  
She pretended not to hear him and continued on with her fussing. "I hope you're not in any pain, seeing as we can't get any more throat medicine for a while."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"There was an accident in the Potions Lab." She replied flippantly, ignorant to Draco's eyes widening. "I'm not sure what, thought. It was something with anti-Skelo-Gro."  
  
Quickly, the bedridden blonde forcefully flung the covers up and hopped out of bed, ignoring the nurse sputtering behind him. He ran as fast as he could in his condition and by the time he reached a nurses' station, he was panting heavily.  
  
He took a moment to compose himself; no Malfoy was ever seen as less than perfect in any situation.  
  
"Could you please tell me where I might find." He was cut off by the soft elevator ping, which in itself would've barely caused a disturbance if not for the two people stumbling out of it. He smiled briefly at the sight before turning back to the nurse. "Never mind."  
  
**********  
  
By now, everyone who had left the waiting room had once again returned, excluding the five that had jobs (and the Grangers) and were now at them.  
  
They watched as Dr. Carroll approached the group much like Dr. Johansson had a few days ago. The elderly man was the replacement doctor and was now regretting taking on the case after all the excitement that had happened. He inwardly cursed Joe for escaping when he did and leaving him with all the complications.  
  
The doctor surveyed the group, his eyes resting briefly on a thin dark- haired man that reminded him of someone he once knew but he dismissed his suspicions. Sirius who was the recipient of this gaze breathed a small sigh of relief when the doctor looked away. Dr. Carroll had once been his doctor and it would do no good if the elderly wizard recognized him. Sirius had been able to walk freely in the hospital as many were too worried about their loved ones in the hospital or were too busy with their jobs and because he was in the recovery ward, he saw few Aurors besides Ari, something he was most grateful for.  
  
He was drawn from his thoughts when the doctor spoke. "Mr. Potter is experiencing a magic de-tox. He'll be in a lot of pain, although we gave him a powerful muggle anesthetic. It might make him seem a little spacey. We think it would be best if family and friends surrounded him so we are going to allow you in. I must ask that you remain very quiet and don't crowd him." All members of the room were too happy to be allowed in to protest at all. "Alright, follow me." He gestured for them to come as he turned and went back down from where he came. They were right outside the room when three people ran down the hallway, stopping when they noticed a member of their party.  
  
Ron looked to see Draco Malfoy flanked by two dark haired people, a man and a girl. Both were dressed in traveling cloaks, expensive ones if Ron was correct. He briefly thought he had seen the girl before but assumed she was visiting someone as well.  
  
"Professor Snape," Draco began, panting after his run down the hallway, "Thank God you're here." He breathed in relief.  
  
"Enough of the dramatics. Just get on with it." The girl huffed impatiently and tapped her foot against the floor. Ron detected a slight French accent.  
  
"I would have if I wasn't interrupted, Allie." Draco said to 'Allie' who rolled her eyes. "Anyway, there was an accident in the Potions Lab."  
  
Snape's face grew concerned, which surprised Ron greatly. He figured the sallow Potions Master was as emotionless as the toad liver that he made Ron cut up in many of his detentions. And as nasty, Ron thought as he wrinkled his nose thinking of the amphibian organs.  
  
"Deadly?"  
  
"No. Just stupid. Just a bone removing potion but it was a new potion and we need someone with your expertise to advise the doctors whether or not they should administer Skelo-Gro." The black haired boy said, flicking his head to toss the bangs out of his eyes.  
  
Snape nodded his head, deep in thought. "Were you three involved?"  
  
"Of course not. We are completely innocent in this situation." Draco said sweetly, looking every bit the angel with his fair features.  
  
"He's about as innocent as his father was." Ron whispered to Hermione, causing her to glare at Ron.  
  
Draco, who also heard the comment, opened his mouth to unleash a scathing retort but paused when he digested the whole sentence. "Was?" He asked in a quiet voice, searching the faces of his companions.  
  
"Merde." Allie whispered, ducking her head at Draco's inquisitive look.  
  
"What happened?" The blonde's face had lost all color; not that he had much anyway, but now was ghostly looking. His lips were drawn into a tight line and his eyes were dark gray and hiding all emotions from view. "Why is my father being referred to in the past tense?"  
  
"Draco," Snape said, stepping forward and placing a hand on his shoulder, "Lucius is gone. He died yesterday."  
  
Ron, meanwhile, had gone pale as well and the only color on his face was from the freckles that dotted his face. He had no idea that the other boy didn't know that his father was dead and now that he thought of it, it wasn't decent to bring that up in front of him even if he had known. Ron felt as heartless as he often accused Malfoy of being.  
  
"And what of my mother?" His voice was so calm and composed that maybe Ron was right in his accusation. When Snape refused to answer Draco, the blonde boy nodded. "I see." With that, he turned and marched down the hallway, the same direction that he came. When the Slytherin reached the end of the hallway, he stopped near a stairwell and went downstairs.  
  
Minerva McGonagall spoke up for the first time that day. "What's downstairs? I thought his room was on this floor."  
  
"Downstairs? The morgue." Dr. Carroll replied with a sigh. Everyone shifted uncomfortably.  
  
Allie made to go the way that Draco left but the other boy grabbed her shoulder and shook his head. "He needs to grieve and he won't do it properly if we're there. Let him go." She looked down towards the ground and the black haired boy grabbed her into a hug and whispered soothing words to her.  
  
Trying to break the mood that had settled over them all, Snape quickly said, "I think we need to go to the Potions Lab. When Draco needs company he'll search us out." With that, all three left.  
  
Ron was once again confused in his thoughts. He had never seen Snape act that nice to anyone, not even the Slytherins because that was fake adoration. Now it seemed genuine. He wondered how close Snape and Malfoy were because he was sure that not even his head of house would have been that kind. Ron still remembered what happened after Ginny had disappeared. McGonagall had been sympathetic but was not as truly concerned as Snape had been just then.  
  
The youngest male Weasley also wondered who the other two were. They didn't look like the brutes Crabbe and Goyle were. Instead, they seemed fairly intelligent, nowhere near Hermione's level of intelligence, Ron thought haughtily. The three of them seemed to be.friends. Which was crazy since Malfoy was a git and gits had no friends.  
  
He found himself in Harry's room when he was finally roused from his thoughts by an elbow from Fred as he tried to enter the room.  
  
"Sorry, Ron, but you're blocking the doorway." His older brother said apologetically. Ron smiled and moved into the room.  
  
They were all crowded around Harry's bed, watching as the young man opened his eyes and blinked at the crowd of people before him.  
  
He gave a lopsided smile and waved a hand cheerily. "Oh, hello."  
  
"Harry, are you alright?" Dumbledore asked as he approached the bed.  
  
"Of course. I feel just dandy Headmaster, but what are you doing in Hogwarts' lake?" Harry was looking at Dumbledore and the picture on the wall but to the one in question it seemed that the boy was truly confused so the old wizard decided to humor him.  
  
"Why, I'm going for a swim." He replied with a smile.  
  
Harry seemed to accept this for he nodded his head and looked seriously for a moment. "Then you better not go naked as Myrtle likes to peep at you." Ignoring his Headmaster's red face, he turned towards the head of his house. "You too McGonagall. No skinny dipping."  
  
"Of course Harry." She bit her lip to stop from smiling but not all others had that tact. Fred and George were practically bursting with laughter.  
  
Harry turned towards the twins and his eyes widened with recognition. "Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum! What are you doing here?" Ginny and Bill had to hold back laughs at the names. "Alice, you're going to want to here the story of the Walrus and the Carpenter." He said to Ginny who nodded encouragingly. "I do hope they don't eat those oysters. I feel so sad." His nose wrinkled as he tried to remember something. Suddenly, he burst out into laughter, ignoring the surprised looks everyone gave him. "Pearls! Oysters! It's all a joke." He then howled with laughter and tossed around on the bed.  
  
"Harry, mate? Are you okay?" Ron asked hesitantly, approaching the bed.  
  
When Harry heard the voice, his hand reached out and grabbed the red head's arm and pulled him close. "Sam!" Ron tried to figure out who Sam was but Harry had once again continued talking now in a stage whisper. "We need to get the ring to Mordor and destroy it, but we must go alone and leave Strider," Now he glanced at Bill who simply raised an eyebrow and let him continue, "and Gimli," Now he glanced at Hagrid, "and Merry and Pippin." He glanced at Hermione but then looked around wildly for Pippin.  
  
"What happened to Legolas and Boromir?" Fred asked teasingly.  
  
Harry racked his brains for a moment, "Well the elf is gone. I don't think he likes me much because he said he won't be my friend. I want him as a friend." Harry said petulantly. "He's pretty. And Boromir." He turned his head and saw Charlie standing to the side. He opened his eyes really wide, an action repeated by Charlie who was slightly scared of what Harry's mind would come up with. "Thank the Valar! Boromir! You're alive. But you can't have my ring."  
  
"Of course not Harry." Charlie replied seriously. This seemed to do because once again Harry directed his gaze elsewhere. Onto Professor Lupin.  
  
"Professor!" He exclaimed delightedly. "How are you?" Then his eyes took on suspicion. "Have you captured those monkeys yet?"  
  
"Monkeys, Harry?" The werewolf asked hesitantly.  
  
"Well, I suppose the monkeys are hairy unless Sam and Merry decided to shave them." All gazes turned towards Ron and Hermione who shrugged in response.  
  
"I meant, what monkeys?"  
  
"Well if you don't know, I won't tell you." Once again he giggled. "That sounds like what he said!" He giggled again.  
  
"What who said?" Dumbledore asked gently.  
  
"What Salazar said." He said and then added as an after thought, "Duh."  
  
"Slytherin?" At Harry's nod he quietly asked, "What did he say?"  
  
"For me to know and to be revealed to you." Harry said in a spooky voice before he laughed again. "He doesn't like hats. He likes stairs and secrets and chambers and wards and I think he was sweet on Rowena but Max the dog just doesn't believe me." Harry gestured towards the lamp before turning back towards the crowd. "So Gandalf how was Moria?"  
  
"It was mostly work, no pleasure." Dumbledore sighed, falling back into the role.  
  
"Then I guess McGonagall wasn't with you." Harry said slyly, making everyone burst out into laughter and the two teachers blush.  
  
"No, just a Balrog."  
  
"Oh." Harry said quietly, "I heard they're kinky, walking around with whips and stuff." This caused everyone to laugh and Harry to stare at them, puzzled by their actions. He was about to say more but his body jerked up in a seizure from the magic de-tox and he cried out in pain. After a minute or two he calmed down. "Oh no! I've become Simon!" He groaned and slapped his forehead. "Don't let Jack kill me, Ralph." He looked towards Sirius as he said this. Then he turned to Percy. "You better watch out, too, Piggy. He's after you."  
  
"Don't worry Harry, er, Simon. Jack's gone." Sirius said gently.  
  
"Phew. I think I'll go to sleep. Bye." Harry turned on his side and pulled the covers up to his chin.  
  
After a chorus of good-byes, they all left the room.  
  
************  
  
"So.how're you feeling?" The black haired man asked with a smile as he stared at his sister.  
  
"Fine for a piece of Jell-o." Andrea said with a sigh as she tried to move her arm but instead just caused it to wriggle.  
  
"You lost forty-two bones." Allie said with a smirk as she watched her sister try to sit up.  
  
"Really? I hadn't noticed." She paused and stared around the room. "Where's Draco?" She said at last.  
  
Both of their faces fell but Snape who walked through the door with a goblet spared them from answering the question. "Here, drink this." As she drank, he began talking. "Draco found out his parents died."  
  
Nearly spitting out the potion, Andrea managed to force out a 'how'.  
  
"Ronald Weasley." Snape muttered with distaste.  
  
"Bastard." Snape eyed Allie oddly who just shrugged. "Well he is. He should have never brought that up." All three murmured in agreement.  
  
"Where is he now?" Andrea asked as she finished drinking the entire potion.  
  
"The morgue." Her brother Randolph replied, gazing down the hallway as if waiting for the blonde boy to appear.  
  
************  
  
The moment he was out of sight, Draco ran madly down the stairs to the morgue. He remembered going with his father to identify his uncle's body so he knew the way even as tears were clouding his vision.  
  
The young Slytherin brushed past a medical examiner and threw the heavy metal doors open with as much force as he could. He stopped in front of a woman who stood over a sheet-covered body.  
  
"Excuse me." He began, as composed as ever.  
  
She turned around in shock and stared at him for a moment. "You're not supposed to be down here."  
  
Draco sighed and closed his eyes. He had other methods of getting information out of this lady. When he opened his eyes again, they were no longer the dark gray eyes that the world saw. Instead his eyes were hypnotic swirling mists that held the woman's will in his smoky grasp.  
  
"Will you help me?" Draco's voice was not the silky hiss, but, like his eyes, his voice had changed into a deep velvety caress.  
  
Dumbly, the woman nodded her head.  
  
"Good. Where are the." He choked on the next word, "bodies of Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy?" Again the woman said nothing but managed to point to two metal squares, one on top of the other, on the wall to his right. "Thank you." Then, dropping his cool composure, he ran towards the wall and dragged open the heavy slab with the name Narcissa Malfoy posted to it. An icy mist rose around his face as a dark bag was pulled into view. Unzipping it carefully, he looked into the still face of his mother.  
  
This.creature was not his mother. Gone were the delicate features of Narcissa that created a beautiful woman. Instead were claw like hands, an elongated face and fangs peering out from her bloodless mouth. She was partially transformed into a veela, half of her heritage, but Draco was not shocked nor did he know the reason on the change. In all the years he knew his mother, she had never altered her appearance like this. She had never laid a hand on him before, either, Draco thought as he rubbed his neck gently. Something had happened to her, Draco knew, and he intended to figure out what. He grasped her claw like hand and shed a few tears over her body before kissing her forehead.  
  
"Good-bye Mother, rest in peace." He placed a hand over her face and quietly whispered, "Recurro." Narcissa's face once again showed her frosted beauty. He didn't want anyone telling him his mother was a monster, which is what would happen when the hospitals leaked the pictures. He closed the body bag and pushed it back into wall. Then he turned towards his father's.  
  
Doing as he did with his mother, he began to unzip the bag. However, instead of a monster like appearance like his mother had had, his father's face was much more gruesome. It looked like some rabid beast had attacked him and tore him apart with its claws. Deep gashes ran across his face in every direction and Draco was sure it was worse on the lower half. He purposely kept that part closed. Draco didn't dare grab his hand like he did his mother for he was too frightened to see what was left of it. Instead, he pushed the silvery hair out of his fathers face and stroked an unblemished part of his cheek. He stopped in shock when he noticed a sprinkle of blood that had not been there before. Brushing his hand over the skin again, the dots of blood increased in amount.  
  
Shaking, he turned his hand over and saw flecks of frozen blood melting in his hand. The hand that held his mother's. Looking around for a sink, he spotted one and dunked his hand under the cold spray, watching the red trickle down the drain. He braced his hands against the sink before going back over to his father's body. He placed a kiss on his forehead like he had to his mother and was prepared to seal up the bag again when something stopped him.  
  
This was the end of his childhood. The single defining moment that he would remember forever; it was the day he said good-bye to his parents and assumed the position of the head of the Malfoy family, his father's place. The thought rushed around in his head and he collapsed to his knees, a fresh bout of tears springing from his eyes and landing on the body bag where Draco rested his head. For an hour he cried until his eyes were swollen and he had no more tears to cry. But crying wasn't the only way to deal with grief in his family. He let his head hang back and opened his mouth to create a blood-chilling scream that carried throughout the hospital. Patients flinched in their sleep, tears sprung in the eyes of those awake, babies cried more, the injured stopped wincing at their injuries and the ones in the mental ward stopped shrieking. Then there was silence in the whole hospital for a moment. And then everything started up again as if nothing had ever happened, so was the way of a veela's mourning.  
  
*********  
  
The four black haired people lifted their heads at the sound of the shriek, only they didn't forget.  
  
"Go after him Randolph." Allie said, gently pushing her brother out the door. "You understand what it's like to loose both of your parents." He nodded and swept from the room. "Andy, what happened to you? You've never fainted while making a potion."  
  
Snape, who had just returned from putting the Skelo-Gro back, looked up curiously.  
  
She sighed softly before speaking. "He reached out to me." All in the room closed their eyes in a pained fashion for they all knew what this meant.  
  
"Then it's time." Allie mumbled. "He needs to know." She directed this to the Potions Master who hovered uncertainly.  
  
"Maybe we should wait." He began.  
  
"We've waited for thirteen years. Pulling me in like that only proves it and if we wait to tell him and he does it again, he'll know anyway." Andrea stated, wincing as she felt her hand re-grow its bones.  
  
"But not now. He's on pain killers now and he probably wouldn't understand a thing we tell him." Snape commented.  
  
"Not now." Allie agreed. "But soon."  
  
***********  
  
When Randolph burst through the doors in the morgue, he quickly scanned the whole room looking for a flash of silvery blond hair. His eyes flicked over the worker who was just standing there in a daze before locating the boy lying over the body of his father. Quickly, he ran and pulled Draco off him.  
  
"Let go of me." Draco gritted out through clenched teeth, trying to get back to his family.  
  
"No." He said simply, wrestling with the boy and tugging him to the other side of the room. When it seemed that it would be difficult to keep him away, Randolph whipped out his wand and cast the body-bind curse on Draco. He laid the boy on the ground and walked over to the deformed face of Lucius Malfoy and re-zipped the bag and closed the chamber.  
  
He released Draco from the charm and was prepared when he ran towards him, intent on seeing his father again.  
  
"Just leave me alone, Randolph."  
  
"No way, Drake. This isn't healthy. You need to let go."  
  
Draco's face twisted in rage. "Let go? Let go! He's my father. I can't just let him go, you uncaring bastard." He ran at the older man but found himself pinned to the floor.  
  
"Yes, Lucius is dead, Draco." At these words, he stopped struggling. "You'll just make yourself sick by staring at him like that because that's not your father. That's just his body; the man's gone Draco."  
  
"But I could bring him back." Draco whispered. "I know a spell, I could do it."  
  
More forcefully, Randolph gripped his wrists and held them to the side of Draco's head. "No! What the hell do you think you would be doing? He'd be a zombie, not a person."  
  
"He'd be alive." Draco said staring towards the wall his father was behind.  
  
Randolph yanked his head back to meet his. "You will not attempt any spell like that, do you hear me? Grieve for him, cry, or kick the shit out of me, I don't care but just let him go."  
  
Draco chocked on his words. "How can I let him go when I want him here with me more than anything?"  
  
"Because Lucius would hate himself for what was taken from you to complete that spell and bring him back. You lose bits of your soul Draco. That's why the magic is so dark." He sighed and bent his head. "But it gets easier, you know? The sadness won't go away but every morning, it's easier to get up in the morning without thinking of ways how you can join them."  
  
"What did it feel like when you lost your parents?"  
  
He took a deep breath and released Draco. "I felt so alone and abandoned. I cursed them for leaving me and then I cursed myself for not being strong enough to go to them. There was a hole inside of me and I felt like I would never be complete again."  
  
"Were you?"  
  
"No." At Draco's disappointed face he added, "But the hole got smaller by other people. Like my sisters, Severus, you and your family, and my friends. I won't lie and say that this is my perfect life, Draco, but I love it and all the people in it and I wouldn't trade any of them for my parents to be alive because then a new hole would form and I still wouldn't be complete." Draco nodded slowly and let a tear slide down his face.  
  
"I don't feel alone. I have you guys, right?"  
  
"Always." He gave a small smile and climbed off his cousin. "Want to come watch Andrea grow her bones back?"  
  
"I think I just want to sleep."  
  
"Okay, but come back with us. There's an extra bed in Andrea's room." Draco nodded and they stood to leave. "Oh, by the way, you might want to release that lady from your spell."  
  
"I kind of like her better this way." ************  
  
"Ow. Mione! Stop that!" Ron cried as his best friend smacked him across the waiting room after they left their other best friend's room.  
  
"You are such a moron, Ronald Weasley." She said each word as she slapped a magazine against his head. "Maybe I can beat the stupidity out of you."  
  
"Not likely or else I would have tried it." Snape's silky voice said as he slid into the room.  
  
With a final 'whap', she sat back down and glared at the redheaded boy. "You really are a moron."  
  
"I'm sorry, okay?" Ron pleaded, eyes closing in relief as she put the magazine down. "I didn't know he had no idea about his parents. I feel awful." He collapsed next to Sirius who patted his shoulder awkwardly.  
  
"How could you not have known? It's been in the papers that the whole family was in the hospital, morgue or room, and it wasn't like they were very informed in here." Percy said.  
  
"Well I didn't. What happened to his family anyway?" Ron asked, rubbing his head tenderly.  
  
"That, Mr. Weasley," Snape said in his icy voice, "Is a matter between Mr. Malfoy and his family."  
  
"What family?" Ron snorted.  
  
With a resounding slap, Hermione stalked back to her seat and left Ron lying on the floor with a red handprint on his face. "You enormous prick!"  
  
"Hermione!" Molly shouted from her seat.  
  
"How dare you? He may not be here but there is no reason for you to talk ill of the dead. That is the most insensitive thing I have ever heard you say!"  
  
Snape looked at her with vague admiration and nearly smiled at the sprawled body of his student still on the floor.  
  
"Albus how was Potter?" Snape asked, as he turned his interest away from the two and to his employer.  
  
"A little out of it like the doctor said. He's asleep now. It seems he's been reading an awful lot this summer, wouldn't you say Sirius?" He turned his twinkling blue eyes to Sirius who smiled back.  
  
"He has. Lord of the Rings, Lord of the Flies and others."  
  
"I was wondering where Piggy and Ralph came from." Arthur said thoughtfully.  
  
"Dear God, don't tell me he compared himself to the martyr, Simon, did he?" Snape groaned.  
  
"Yes, he did. And also Frodo Baggins." Albus mussed thoughtfully.  
  
"That is just like the boy with his swelled head to place himself as the martyr and the center of the universe."  
  
"Come now, Severus. He was merely confused."  
  
"He must have been to see a comparison between himself and those characters."  
  
"Now tell me what happened in the Potions Lab. Were you of any assistance?"  
  
Snape sighed and sank into one of the chairs. "Yes. The potion was brewed perfectly so there were no complications but for the life of me I can't figure out the use for a potion that removes bones." Albus chuckled slightly. "Anyway, Andrea claims that she was 'called'." He gave Dumbledore a significant glance and the old man nodded gravely.  
  
"Well, I believe you know what to do."  
  
"Yes. But not now; we've decided to wait for a few days until everything is more.lucid."  
  
"Good plan then. Now I believe we have some business at the patents' office."  
  
After they left, Ginny looked towards Hermione. "What was that about?"  
  
"I don't know."  
  
**********  
  
Harry was sleeping peacefully when he suddenly sprang up from bed his more coherent than he had been that afternoon. He let out a soft groan of pain and flopped back onto the bed. He felt that the medicine was gone and all of his pain intensified. His body ached all over in varying amounts but the pain was constant and that was not the source of his soft exclamation. His head felt like it was stuffed with cotton; it was thick and hazy and he could barely think but Harry simply couldn't figure out why. He knew he was alone in his room but when he closed his eyes, he felt like he was in a crowded street.  
  
He tried to go to sleep again but his door opening interrupted that. Inside walked Joe who was still supposed to be gone for another day, but he wasn't alone. His doctor was dressed up in a tuxedo and was escorting a young woman on his arm that also dressed fancifully. Harry took a moment to study her as they stepped into the light.  
  
She had long brown hair that hung down her back in gentle curls over her light blue strapless dress. Her eyes were brown also and her oval face seemed intelligent. In a way, she reminded him of Hermione; a person with plain beauty and understated grace that was as sharp and quick as they came. The woman vaguely reminded him of someone and as he thought, a mental image of Penelope Clearwater flashed through his brain but it was a picture of Percy's girlfriend that he had never seen before and unless he had a rather vivid imagination, the memory wasn't his.  
  
"Oh, Harry, you're awake." Joe said as he closed the door behind him and turned on a light. "Am I disturbing you? Has your pain medication worn off yet?"  
  
Harry shook his head and sat in thought about the memory as Joe did the PI spell on him again. "No, I'm fine and yes, my medicine is gone. Why are you back so early? And who's your fiancé?"  
  
"Oh, this is Caitlin, she's.wait." He looked at Harry strangely. "How'd you know she was my fiancé? I just proposed last night."  
  
His eyes opened in shock and under Joe's scrutinizing gaze, Harry nervously scooted backwards on the bed until he was flush against the headboard and curled in the fetal position. "I-I don't know." He said quietly as he tried to sort out his thoughts but to no avail. Thoughts and questions plagued him, as did theories from books he had never read and images of people he had never met.  
  
"Harry, what's my middle name?" He spoke calmly but Harry could tell he was weary of his patient.  
  
Harry concentrated for a moment and closed his eyes, he opened them and stared directly at his physician. "Luke."  
  
"Oh my God." Joe whispered as he sat in the chair and placed his head in his hands.  
  
"Joe? What is it? What's wrong?" Caitlin asked as she leant over her betrothed.  
  
"Harry, I'm going to ask you questions really fast. Answer what you can." He began with new determination. "What's Caitlin's full name?"  
  
"Caitlin Maria Clearwater." Harry answered tonelessly, both males ignoring the shocked gasp from the other person in the room.  
  
"I graduated from Hogwarts how many years ago."  
  
"Six."  
  
"My great-aunt's name is."  
  
"Eleanor."  
  
"I like."  
  
"Peas."  
  
"Do I really?"  
  
"No because.they're round?" Harry looked puzzled for a moment. "You dislike round things?"  
  
Joe took a quick glance at Caitlin who looked amused. "No, of course not. That was..a test. Let's continue. Okay what is-"  
  
"Douglas, Six, square, two, football, French, potatoes, Mars, swimming and bed linens." He looked over at Joe's shocked face. "Is that all the questions?"  
  
"Well, the last answer was 'pillow case' but I think I'll let that go." Joe said lightly although his eyes betrayed him with the severity of the situation.  
  
Harry heard Joe's thoughts loud and clear and he sighed. "Joe? What's happening?"  
  
"I don't know." He sighed also and ran a hand through his hair. "There are some books about people who-"  
  
"I know." At Joe's shocked look, he rolled his eyes. "I can read your mind, remember?" Just then, everything went quiet again. "Hey. It stopped."  
  
Joe looked up and stopped raking his fingers through his hair. "What?"  
  
"That mind thing. It's gone. Maybe it was just a passing thing." Harry shrugged.  
  
"Or it's just phasing in and out until you learn to control it." Caitlin suggested. Both males looked up in surprise; they had completely forgotten she was even in the room. "Hey, I'm an Obliverator; mind affecting spells and conditions are my specialty." The doctor slapped himself on the forehead in his stupidity and Harry remained unmoved.  
  
"So, this means I'm some sort of mind reader?" Harry asked.  
  
"Telepath." Both adults said at the same time and Harry smirked.  
  
"Okay, so I'm a telepath. How 'bout we get to the why part."  
  
"If we knew the why and the how then this would all be solved." Joe said.  
  
"Well, we can all rake our brains for the answers, or," She added mischievously, "Harry could rake our minds for us," Harry grinned at her sad attempt at humor and Joe rolled his eyes, "But unfortunately, we know nothing so I think we better just sleep on it and begin again in the morning." Harry nodded and she grabbed Joe's arm and pulled him out the door. They all mumbled their good-byes and Harry rolled on his side.  
  
So, he was a telepath. Once again something miraculous only happened to him; he really didn't need or want another reason to stand out. However, on the other hand, he supposed it could be a little interesting being able to peak into people's minds. It would also be an extreme invasion of privacy, but he doubted whether he would be hesitant about using his gift on someone like that Skeeter woman who had no idea the meaning of privacy breach. Or possibly Malfoy..  
  
Harry shook his head and tried his best to stop that train of thought. A small voice inside him was saying that maybe Draco had been right in saying that they weren't ready to be friends yet. Harry would never dream of peaking into Ron or Hermione's mind so why was he trying to invade the mind of his newest friend?  
  
'Maybe because he's not your friend yet.' There was the small voice again which oddly sounded like Snape's unctuous tone. He quickly shushed the voice and tried to go back to sleep but his mind was cluttered with thoughts, most containing the petit blond boy who held an undecided status with him. Truthfully, he couldn't figure out why he wanted to be friends with Draco in the first place. All he knew was that he wanted the same Draco he met a few nights ago with Andrea. The one whose eyes lit up when he laughed and made cynical and sarcastic comments but managed to do it without malice. Harry wanted to be friends with the only person who could keep him on his toes, be his mirror image and an equal while standing for everything he himself stood against. The feelings rushed around in his head and confused him. It would be a long time before he went to sleep that night.  
  
********** 


	11. Summer from Hell

Okay, next chapter. Not much to say except that I sort of began focusing on my other characters because they're tying the story together. But don't worry, they won't take over the story but be prepared for a bunch of shifting that will be going on soon.  
  
Oh, also: BIG NEWS!!!!!  
  
Not really, but I just wanted to get your attention. I want to take a poll about a couple of shippers. And by the way, I have a little interlude of Percy/Oliver. Nothing extreme but I think it'll be there next chapter. Anyway, back to the poll:  
  
Should I have: Sirius/Ari Sirius/Remus Remus/Severus Remus just by himself.  
  
Please choose one 'cause I'm really open to any of these shippers right now. That's all, enjoy the chapter and I'll try to keep the poll running for a bit.  
  
Summer from Hell  
  
"Hey." Andrea said through clenched teeth from her bed. The potion was still in effect and she had a constant pain in her arm as the bones formed again.  
  
"Hi." Her brother grunted as he hauled Draco to bed. The young man had already fallen asleep on the way to her room so Randolph had carried him and was now depositing him gently on the free bed next to his sister and pulling the covers up under his chin. Walking over to where the crowd was, he slumped in his seat and buried his head in his hands and gave a soft groan.  
  
"That bad?" Allie smirked as she handed Andrea a glass of water.  
  
Randolph whined and threw his arm dramatically over his eyes. "Worse." Both girls hissed in pain, for sympathy and, in Andrea case, for the real pain her arm was giving her. "He's going to be a nightmare when he finally comes to age in veela years. I could only just restrain him now."  
  
"You had to restrain him?" Andrea asked.  
  
"Oh yeah. I found him crying over his father's body. Remember what the papers said about his body?" The girls nodded. "It didn't do him justice. Seriously, it was gruesome and poor Draco is lying on him and crying with the morgue attendant standing there in the daze he left her in. He actually wanted to do a resurrection spell." Now everybody in the room, excluding Draco, shuddered at the thought.  
  
"I hope you stopped him." Allie muttered.  
  
"No, I didn't and Zombie-Lucius is walking around at this very moment." He bit out sarcastically and threw an apologetic look to his sister when he saw her saddened face. "Sorry, it's been a really long day." He took a moment to gather his wits before speaking again in a small voice. "Know what the saddest thing is?" Not waiting for an answer, he continued. "He grew up so much in the hour and a half that we left him."  
  
"Like the end of Never-Never land." Andrea said in a quiet whisper.  
  
"No more pearls in oysters, no more bathtubs filled with jell-o or tap- dancing rodents." Allie whispered.  
  
"He grew up faster than I did." Randolph mused. "He's the Master of Malfoy Manner and all of the finances. He doesn't have any blood relatives left."  
  
"He must feel so alone." Allie said quietly, looking over to his bed.  
  
"He has us." Randolph smiled, an action repeated by the twins.  
  
"He always did."  
  
"And always will." Andrea finished firmly. "But now, I think I'm going to go to sleep." She said, stifling a yawn.  
  
"Sure. Let's go out into the waiting room and kill that outspoken redhead." Randolph said as he pressed a kiss to her forehead, an action repeated by Allie on both of Andrea's cheeks.  
  
"Sleep well." Allie said before both left the room. Andrea stared at the ceiling for a moment before turning to her side and glancing at Draco.  
  
"You can stop pretending; they're gone." The statement was met with gray eyes that snapped opened.  
  
***********  
  
The two siblings marched down the halls quietly with their cloaks flowing out behind them and giving off a commanding and cruel air.  
  
"Are we going to kill him?" Allie asked jokingly.  
  
"No, that's illegal. I'll settle for torture." He grinned wolfishly back and they strode into the waiting room and felt all eyes upon them.  
  
Allie easily found Ron and glared at him. "You-wait. Who are you exactly?"  
  
"Ron." He managed quietly.  
  
"Right, Ron, you're an idiot." She said simply.  
  
"I'm sorry, alright?" Ron groaned. "Please don't slap me too." He whimpered pitifully.  
  
"Who slapped you before?" Randolph said, snorting in amusement. His smile grew when the young man pointed to Hermione.  
  
"I like you." Allie said to the girl before turning back to Ron. "Now, if we can just get cursing you out of the way, we'll be ready to go." She missed Ron's paling face and thought deeply for a second. "I think we should castrate him." Ron made a funny noise and grew even whiter, however, she saw the color change this time. "Relax, originally we wanted to kill you, but seeing how that is illegal, only little Ron is going to die." Both newcomers cackled evilly.  
  
"Unless." Randolph whispered, rubbing his chin in a pondering stance, "Unless we make his death look like an accident."  
  
"But how would we do that?" Allie asked, ignoring the shocked looked on everybody's face.  
  
"Easy. We get a rockslide."  
  
"But how would we get a rockslide?"  
  
"Don't worry, I know a guy."  
  
"No way. My idea is fast and then he gets to suffer for the rest of his life." Randolph nodded in agreement.  
  
"Fine, but next time."  
  
"Oh, goes without saying. Anyway." With that, she withdrew her wand from her cloak and pointed it at Ron. Everyone's eyes widened and a few of the adults began trying to reason with her. "Castratio!"  
  
"No!" Ron cried and tried to cover his groin, his eyes squeezed shut in fear. He didn't hear Randolph whisper another spell before he opened his eyes and wondered why nothing happened. "Hey, did the-" He paused in shock when he saw the strange girl holding up a clear jar with some fluids and what looked like-.  
  
'Thump.'  
  
Everybody who had been staring at the black haired duo now turned to the redhead's body that was sprawled on the floor where he fainted. The siblings exchanged looks before dissolving into laughter.  
  
"Oh my God." Allie gasped out as she fell to the floor clutching her stomach. "I can't believe he fell for that!"  
  
All the members of the waiting room stopped cringing for a moment and looked at the girl.  
  
"What do you mean? Wasn't that a real spell?" Arthur asked quietly.  
  
"No." Randolph smirked from the chair he was now sitting in. "We just did that to scare him. He still has all his bits."  
  
"Then what about the jar?" Fred asked as he looked closely at the object still clasped in the older boy's hands.  
  
"Just two knuts that I transfigured. See?" With that, he said the counter curse and passed the coins around. "He can keep those if he likes. Then again, I don't know if he wants to remember this episode."  
  
"Anyway," Allie said, once she had overcome her laughter, "It's not like we could have done it legally."  
  
"Not that that has ever mattered." Her brother whispered, causing her to grin.  
  
"Still, it's illegal to remove any body part from another person without receiving their permission or unless it's for medical treatment like amputation." After finishing this thought, McGonagall seemed to have finally found her tongue.  
  
"Randolph Enoch and Allison Caprice!" Both flinched and turned towards the professor. "This is one of the worst things you have ever done!"  
  
"But not the worst ever, right?" Randolph added quickly.  
  
"See? We're learning. All those speeches, warnings, lectures and death threats are finally getting to us." Allie said smiling innocently.  
  
Bill, who had just gotten there less than twenty minutes ago, looked as though something clicked in his mind.  
  
"Wait, Randolph Enoch? Did you go to Hogwarts by any chance?" Bill asked.  
  
"Yes." He answered warily before his face took on the same expression Bill's just had. "William Weasley? Oh, wow. How are you?"  
  
"Good. How about you? Where do you live now? What have you been doing?"  
  
"Eh." He gave his hand a little shake to show that he was doing okay. "I live in Hell now." He said, smiling evilly.  
  
"That I wouldn't doubt, but seriously." Bill said.  
  
"He's serious." Allie drawled as she picked herself off the floor with her brother's assistance. "There actually is a town in northern America called Hell. I think it's what made him move there in the first place."  
  
"That's not true." He pouted. "I actually moved there because of my job. I'm a creature linguist and contrary to popular belief, the town was actually named Hell because a couple muggles saw some wild goblins running around. Now they just fabricated this story about this captain telling his explorer that he 'didn't care what he called the town. He could call it Hell if he liked.' So now I work with the Magical Creatures Department and International Cooperation for the American Ministry. What about you?"  
  
"I'm a Curse Breaker for Gringotts." Bill stated proudly.  
  
"Really? Wicked." Randolph said in awe. "So you deal with goblins too."  
  
"Yep. They treat me okay, seeing how I keep bringing them gold." Bill said with a laugh.  
  
"Yeah, they're pretty decent if you rub them the right way." The black haired boy mused.  
  
"Bill," Molly Weasley asked, "Could you tell us how you two know each other?"  
  
"Oh, right. Sorry mum." Bill replied. "Randolph and I were in school together for about two years until Randolph-" He trailed off for a moment and then turned back to his ex-classmate. "Wait, what happened to you?"  
  
"I'm staying with the story that I left because of creative differences." He stated smugly, ignoring McGonagall rolling her eyes.  
  
"Poor baby. No one understands you." Allie said with mock-sympathy.  
  
"Was he in the same house?" Molly asked cordially.  
  
Bill, Allie, and McGonagall bit back a laugh. "Of course not." Bill answered. "He was a Slytherin." At his family's shocked gasped he tried to stifle a laugh.  
  
"Don't look so surprised." Randolph said smoothly. "I did just threaten to kill your son."  
  
"How'd you guys meet anyways?" Ginny asked.  
  
Both boys shared a secret gin. "Well, we were in Potions class and Snape decided to remove points from Gryffindor just for the heck of it when Randolph jumps out of his seat and starts declaring that there should be 'equality for all and why should the toad liver be separate from the salamander's? They belonged to the same family and it's what's on the inside that counts and he was sure that inside a potion the livers would be interchangeable'." At his family's un-amused glances, he quickly added, "You just had to be there. Anyway, he starts running around the room switching all the contents and yelling 'no more potions racism!' It was actually very inspiring."  
  
"And very stupid. We both ended up with detention." He then turned towards the Weasley family. "I'm not usually like that. I just had a lot of sugar that day. Luckily, in that detention, where we had to resort all of the ingredients, we became friends."  
  
"And in two years you two managed to break 478 different school rules." McGonagall said with distaste.  
  
"You mean Bill, Head Boy Bill, was a trouble maker?" George asked with delight.  
  
"Yes Mr. Weasley. However," McGonagall continued, "His attitude changed once Randolph left and he began to concentrate on his studies. I wish you and Fred would do the same."  
  
"You were Head Boy?" Randolph asked in surprise, completely ignoring his ex- Transfiguration teacher's remark.  
  
"Yep." Bill said as he nodded.  
  
"Will wonders never cease?"  
  
"Possibly if you actually do something legal." McGonagall mumbled.  
  
Allie looked up at her brother and the two of them had a silent conversation before getting up to leave. "Speaking of legal, we've got some business with the ministry."  
  
"Right. We need to go, but don't worry. We'll be seeing a lot of each other; I can guarantee it." **********  
  
"Next!"  
  
Albus and Severus stepped forward, the younger man clutching a piece of paper in his right hand.  
  
"Hello. Welcome to the Office of Patents. What may I do for you today?" The clerk said with fake jovialness.  
  
"We're here to register a potion made by a Miss Andrea Caprice." Dumbledore said cautiously, watching the clerk's face grow into one of weariness.  
  
"Caprice, you say?" At their nods, he sighed and rubbed his temples. "Let me get the Head of the department." He turned from his post and went in back only to come back a minute later with a gruff looking man in tow.  
  
Anthony Lynch, the Head of the Department of Legal Documents, was always a force to be reckoned with. Dusty blond hair did nothing to hide his icy blue eyes and if that wasn't intimidating, his bulky body comprised of hard muscles that towered over anyone was. He was also Aiden Lynch's father, the seeker for Ireland, and the older Lynch was once a beater for Puddlemere. Rumor had it that he kept his beater club around for disgruntled employees.  
  
Snape carefully masked his emotions only showing indifference towards Lynch while Albus merely gazed innocently and rocked back and forth on his heels.  
  
"Follow me, gentlemen." His gruff voice grunted as he turned towards a back room. The room they entered was drab and a faded taupe that was partially hidden by rows of file cabinets that covered every wall except for the one his desk was situated in front of. The desk itself looked to be a dark mahogany, though it was difficult to see as piles of papers were shuffled in all directions on the surface. Even looking at it now, Snape could see another file of papers appear in his inbox with a fait 'pop'. Lynch gestured to the two chairs in front of his desk as he seated himself in his own. "Well, what can we do for you today?"  
  
Albus once again explained the situation and the other man sunk back into his chair and appeared to be in deep thought.  
  
"What type of potion was it?" He finally said at last, though this question was directed to Snape.  
  
"A bone removal potion. It counteracts the effects of Skelo-Gro." As the man continued to think, Snape quickly added. "Really, it was nothing dangerous." This seemed to snap Lynch out of it and he brought his head up to face the two people in front of him.  
  
"No, it's not dangerous, but you know the rules and restrictions as well as I do. She was forbidden to create any potion until she is a licensed witch. In addition to that, she's not allowed to use magic when away from school and potions fall under the magic category. We've even changed the rules around a bit for her and allowed her to make a potion when supervised by a potions master or when requested to by a doctor or nurse at the hospital she's volunteering at." He sighed and leaned forward placing his hands on the desk. "I'm going to have speak with the Ministers, International Corporation, and The Department of Underage Wizardry. We might have to suspend her magic all together."  
  
Both professors nodded and they rose to leave but halted when Lynch spoke again.  
  
"Shame to see such a bright creature hindered by all these restrictions." Snape half-turned and slowly nodded but felt a chill go down his back in the abstract way he said the statement.  
  
**********  
  
"Are you okay?" Andrea asked hesitantly as she propped herself up on her pillow. Draco did the same and they both stared at each other for a moment before he took a deep breath and sighed.  
  
"I've been better." He said bluntly, causing his cousin to crack a small grin.  
  
"I think we've all been. It's like the summer from Hell." Draco gave a mirthless chuckle at that.  
  
"Very true. I almost can't wait to go back to school. How's your arm?"  
  
Andrea shook her arm a little to show that it had most of its bones back. "Better. I wish I hadn't invented that potion. It was nothing but trouble. You know, Draco," She said, turning serious, "We are all here for you. Randolph's not the only one who has been in your shoes."  
  
"I know, but let's not talk about it now. I want to take it one step at a time but now it beginning to feel like a."  
  
"A leap?" Andrea offered helpfully.  
  
"Yeah." They sat in silence for a few minutes, each thinking over the day. Finally Draco spoke up but in a small and tired voice. "What's going to happen to me?"  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"The rest of the summer, and all the other summers until I'm eighteen." His voice began to crack as a single tear rolled down his cheek. "I don't want to - I can't go back to the Manor, but I can't just give it up. It's my home."  
  
"You can always stay with us and your loaded so it's not like you have to sell it."  
  
He paused for a moment before whispering, "They died there, didn't they?" At her nod, he lowered himself down on his pillow. "Do I really want that memory associated with where I live? To walk in everyday and know that the floor was once covered in their blood and the ceiling is where my mother hung herself? I'd go mad and probably join them."  
  
"Your house always did have evil spirits lurking in it. I never did see how you could stand to live in a place where poltergeists roam freely and where countless people have died and now haunt the place." She shivered at the thought. "Maybe it's for the best. Let all the dead rest. That house wasn't built on good ground."  
  
"No, it wasn't." He said in agreement. "And I guess I could live in it because it was in the past; I didn't know the people who had died so it didn't seem real. When we walk down the street, who knows how may people's remains lie below us?"  
  
"That's a rather morbid thought."  
  
"I have a sick and twisted psyche."  
  
"That you do." There was silence for a moment. "Wait, how did you know about Narcissa?"  
  
"You mean her death?" His voice warbled on the last word.  
  
"Yeah." She replied warily, unsure how well he could handle the topic.  
  
"I saw the marks on her neck." He replied seemingly indifferent, but Andrea could tell from the stiffness of his voice that his emotions were carefully concealed in an icy mask.  
  
"You're made of stronger stuff then I am."  
  
"Maybe, maybe not. Father always taught me to hide what I felt from the world because it's like showing your hand too early." He gave a dry chuckle at some thought. "He used a lot of poker analogies. Odd how you notice things like that now."  
  
"Really? What other strange things do you remember?" She asked, watching as his eyes lit up with delight.  
  
He opened his mouth to say something but closed it and shook his head after a brief internal debate. "Maybe we should continue this conversation later. I think I'm just going to get some rest."  
  
Andrea nodded and fluffed her pillow, preparing to do the same. "Want a dreamless sleep potion?  
  
"If it's not too much trouble." She nodded and got up to prepare the goblet, when she turned back, he was already asleep. She smiled tiredly and placed the steaming glass on his tray and climbed into bed herself. 


	12. Interlude

In the waiting room, Hermione sat in deep thought about the strangers that had just left. Ron waved a hand in front of her face, which resulted in the female of the Gryffindor trio slapping his hand away absentmindedly.  
  
"Hermione."  
  
Still nothing.  
  
"Herm!"  
  
A vague flicker of recognition.  
  
This called for the big guns. "Oh, goodness. You failed all the O.W.L's!"  
  
After falling off her chair, she got up and glared at the youngest male Weasley before sitting back into her chair and going into deep thought. Ron shrugged his shoulders and left to watch Charlie and George play chess in a corner. It was Ginny who sat next to Hermione and quietly asked her what she was thinking of.  
  
"I don't know, exactly." Hermione admitted, "But there was something about the way that girl cast her spell that has me perplexed."  
  
"What has you puzzled, exactly?"  
  
Hermione paused before answering. "I guess it was the way she moved her wand; it was unique yet I've seen it somewhere before." Hermione thought back to less than an hour ago and replayed the scene in her mind. The muggle-born was always observant with a strong photographic memory, perfect for spell memorization. But unlike with her studying where the answers still in the book, she had to rake through the jammed sections of her mind, but to recall such an insignificant thing at a school, for she knew it happened at Hogwarts, where waving a wand was as common as breathing, was a most difficult task. Her best chance, she assumed, was to think back to the Dueling Club, but even that was tricky as she remembered being stuck in a headlock for a majority of the class. Hermione was so deep in thought that she didn't notice Ginny speaking to her.  
  
"What was that, Gin?"  
  
"Oh, I said that maybe you should ask Percy or Bill or Charlie. I doubt Fred and George would know; they're not much for face-to-face confrontation." Hermione nodded at the suggestion.  
  
"Good idea. Maybe Percy would know, as I assume that Charlie wouldn't duel that much, seeing as he works with dragons and Bill works with mainly curses and theory." With that, she got up and walked over to Percy who was scribbling across parchment with his quill. Probably working, Hermione thought with a small laugh. It seemed that the uptight Weasley was still the workaholic he was last summer. She wondered if he ever did anything that wasn't approved by his parents for it seemed that the title 'Perfect Percy' that the twins had bestowed on him suited him quite nicely.  
  
When Hermione got closer to him, he noticed her presence and quickly muttered an ink-drying spell before shoving the piece of parchment in his cloak pocket. "Hello, Hermione. How may I help you?"  
  
"I was wondering about wand waving techniques and Ginny thought that you might know something about them."  
  
"No, I'm sorry. I don't know that much about them." At this statement, Fred, who had been eavesdropping, mock-fainted. Percy threw him a dirty glare but the prankster didn't notice as his eyes were closed. "All I do know is that a while ago, many wizards, purebloods, began adopting their own casting modus operandi and the methods were passed down from generation to generation." Hermione nodded at the information for it had helped a bit.  
  
"Thanks Percy. I think I need to go to Diagon Alley, though, to fully understand it. Maybe Flourish and Blotts will have a book on it."  
  
Percy pulled out a watch from inside the folds of his robe and glanced at it carefully. "Well, if you'd like, I could take you now. I need to go to the owl post office to deliver a letter anyway." Hermione nodded happily and stepped back so Percy could rise.  
  
"Where's Hermes, Perce?" Bill asked thinking of his brother's owl.  
  
"He's flying to Siberia. They seem to have a problem with inadequate dragon hide gloves. It's fascinating, really. The gloves seem not to be strong enough and burn rates are going through the roof!"  
  
"Uh.that's great Percy." George said, while glaring at Bill for even bringing up the topic.  
  
Percy huffed, knowing full well that George was mocking him. "Fine, don't see the seriousness now, but wait until you start handling dangerous ingredients and end up being six feet tall with hair spurting out of your nose!" He stomped off and left Hermione to scurry after him.  
  
"Hmm.I wonder what ingredients cause that to happen.." George murmured to his twin, causing identical grins to break across their face.  
  
**********  
  
Allie had no patience for ministry workers, especially those in the social service division. In fact, she planned that should she ever become a politician, she would wipe out that section and make them devote their lives to custodial duties in places like the goblin bank or possibly one of their many tombs they've already plundered. Or even the troll sanctuary. She was sure that their waste was not being picked up adequately. She was drawn out of her thoughts by the unctuous voice of the ministry worker who was talking to her and her brother. Allie wrapped her hand around her wand a little tighter and smiled at the reassurance it gave her.  
  
"I'm sorry, but as Mr. Malfoy has no living blood relatives, he will be placed under our care."  
  
"I just don't understand why we can't adopt him." Randolph said, clutching his wand much like his sister was.  
  
"Mr. Enoch, we both know how the wizarding world feels about adoption. It just simply isn't done."  
  
"That is such bull shit!" Allie said, turning the man's attention over to her. "What about Harry Potter? He was adopted." She pointed out with a smug smile.  
  
The smiled faded as the worker started to smirk in an eerie way. "The Dursleys were blood relatives." He stopped and began to shuffle his papers. "Now, it was decided that until Mr. Malfoy's sixteenth birthday he would be kept as a ward of the Ministry."  
  
"I just don't understand why!" Randolph spat out in frustration.  
  
"It was the Orphaned Code in 1547. The code still stands today and therefore is still valid for this case."  
  
"That's the same code that also states that the Ministry shall gain half of the estate for expenses." The man's smile faded. "From what I understand, the Malfoy estate is rather large and that seems like a rather large sum for only a year." Randolph stated proudly. "I believe if we take this case to court we might gain custody of Mr. Malfoy, and seeing as their ancestral manor is located in France the trial would be held with the French Minister of Magic." Now the smile was gone completely and the man was looking slightly nervous. "And I seem to recall that Minister Dupont does not hold the English Minister in high regard after Fudge hit on her at the International Meeting last year." Randolph's smile was malicious as the worker tugged at his collar apprehensively and wiped beads of sweat off his forehead. The two siblings shared a secret smile and stood to leave.  
  
"We'll be in contact, or at least our lawyers will. Good-day." With that, they turned to leave. She waited until they were outside the building before congratulating her brother. "Nice work in there."  
  
"Thanks." They linked arms and began strolling down the street, hidden from muggles by a strong concealment charm cast by the ministry over the building. "Want to get some lunch?"  
  
She glanced at her watch. "We ate two hours ago."  
  
"How about a snack? Ice-cream, maybe?"  
  
"Sure. Diagon Alley?" She said as her supposition. At the nod of his head, they disappeared.  
  
**********  
  
After stopping at the post office, in which Percy still hid his letter from Hermione and whispered the location to the owl, they had walked to the bookstore where they were both pouring over books.  
  
When Hermione was little, she always craved knowledge and often sat surrounded by books. She was a slight recluse but her parents just always assumed it was just that their daughter enjoyed books, but that wasn't the case. Hermione used them as an escape for she was never the cutest girl or the most popular; her schoolmates regarded her as a know-it-all brushy haired girl and somewhat of a freak. So every afternoon, she'd hide out in the library and devour book after book. She never read the fairytales because she hated knowing that the princes only wanted the princess because of her beauty, something Hermione knew she would never possess. However, the Hunchback of Notre Dame was an exception and her all time favorite.  
  
When she got to Hogwarts, she assumed it to be like her other school, but read everything so as not to be left out. Another reason was that she wanted people to flock to her, if not for her popularity then for her brains. And it had worked. Neville still came to her for homework and a couple Hufflepuffs did the same. Even Ron asked a couple times that first year for help on his homework. Harry, on the other hand, never did. Truth be told, Harry was her first true friend because he didn't ask anything of her, but she offered all she had which bound the three of them closely. And over time, her visits to library became less frequent. Well, she was still in there at least five times a week but only for the joy of learning and not an escape. But stepping in the library or even a bookstore always gave her a secret thrill.  
  
She turned to watch Percy who was reading a Quidditch book surprisingly. Hermione never pegged him to be interested in sports, but supposed that even he had his own depths. Thinking back to last year, she thought she remembered a twin, Fred or George, reading a book of Magic Law. Then again, this could just have been to see what was considered legal.  
  
Looking around, Hermione quickly spotted a book that might fit her needs. 'A History of Duels and Duelist.' Perfect, she thought as she sat down on the floor to read, as there were no chairs in the crowded shop. Scanning the table of contents she quickly found wand motions listed on page 257. Eagerly she flipped forward and scanned the little information they had. It was more precise and lengthy than Percy's information but of no real help except for the last line.  
  
'To see wand movements of certain families, see The Big Book of Duels, by Hugh E. Gargantuan.'  
  
"Perfect." She got up and made her way to the front desk asking where the book was located.  
  
"The Big Book of Duels?" The old shopkeeper shook his head. "I don't believe we carry that anymore. It took up too much space. I could order it for you or you could try the specialty shop down at the end of Diagon Alley. It's fairly close to Knockturn, don't know if you'd want to head down there." He smiled kindly before moving to help another customer.  
  
Hermione sighed and went to find Percy and explain the situation. After she finished, Percy set the book down and regarded her seriously.  
  
"Well, what do you want to do then?"  
  
"Could we try the specialty store?" She pleaded. "I really want this book." The older Weasley sighed before nodding and going out of the store. She skipped happily down the street with Percy walking briskly beside her. They were in such a hurry that they didn't notice the three people that were about to collide with them until it was too late. Hermione moaned as she felt an elbow in her back and a knee in her side. She felt the knee being removed and she was quickly helped to her feet. Looking to see who the others were, she saw the two from the hospital-Randolph and Allie, she thought-and the third was Oliver Wood who was lying on top of Percy in a rather compromising position. It seemed that both men had the air knocked out of them and were struggling to breathe before attempting to stand.  
  
Eventually they caught their breath and Oliver stood up and dragged Percy up with him. "Sorry 'bout that Perce." Percy waved the apology aside and looked to see if everyone else was okay.  
  
Perce? Hermione thought. She knew that only his family called him that and not even Harry, the honorary Weasley did. It then hit her that they were roommates for six years so they must have been close. How close, Hermione had no idea but she was learning a lot about Percy Weasley today.  
  
"So, we meet again. I did say we'd be seeing a lot of each other." Randolph said to the group. "Where were you going at such breakneck speed?"  
  
Hermione was slightly hesitant to tell them as something struck her as odd about them, but Percy had no such qualms. "Dueling specialty store at the end of Diagon Alley." The siblings nodded as one and then turned to Oliver, expecting him to reveal where he was going.  
  
"I was actually coming to find you Perce." He stated blushing slightly, but it was a hot day so maybe it was just the summer heat. "I was walking around here and just got your letter, so I assumed you would be here." So that was the letter he sent, Hermione thought. "I got a few days off and thought it would be fun to hang out until I needed to leave again." Percy nodded and then turned towards the black haired duo.  
  
"And where were you going?"  
  
They shrugged in sync and Hermione noticed they were doing that a lot as if every move they made was choreographed. "Just killing time. We had nothing to do so we thought we'd work off our ice-cream calories." Allie answered. They then shared a significant look, which made Allie put her hands on her hips, and then made Randolph shrug and roll his eyes when she crossed her arms. Eventually he nodded and waved a hand as if to say 'go ahead.' Hermione wondered if maybe they were telepathic. The duo was an enigma and the bushy haired Gryffindor did not like being without answers. "Would you mind if we tagged along? I would like to stop by and grab a pair of gloves." Hermione shrugged and all five of them left to go to the shop.  
  
On the way there, Percy and Oliver led, as the other three did not frequent Diagon Alley. They were having a hushed conversation that seemed to be very pleasant as Percy kept giggling.  
  
Had everybody turned into a different person? People were getting more complicated and it was frustrating Hermione who had just wanted to find a book but instead ended up between two groups of people who were each holding private conversations with another and leaving Hermione out. It was irritating, to say the least, when the normally uptight Percy Weasley began smiling brightly as Oliver Wood replayed his last Quidditch practice. All right, so she was eavesdropping but she had no choice because it wasn't her fault they were talking at a normal speaking level where anyone could overhear. She decided to not pay attention to the discussion and decided to notice the discussers.  
  
Oliver was, as always, cute and well built. In fact, Hermione once had a crush on him in second year, a secret that would die with her. He was more tan then she last remembered and definitely had a better body. It seemed that professional Quidditch had its advantages. He had grown older but had not lost the roguish boyish charms he always seemed to possess. He had light brown hair that did nothing to hide his blue eyes that burned with such intensity during Quidditch matches. And it seemed that the dedication that he used saved for the game was now directed to the person he was walking next to.  
  
Speaking of that person, Hermione turned her attention to Percy. Quite frankly, the diligent Weasley was nothing special to look at. Sure, he had improved from the gawky fifth year student she first met but he wasn't gorgeous in her standards. He, of course, displayed the typical red hair though his was curlier like his mother's unlike Ron's or the twins that fell flat. He shed his horn rimmed for sleeker inexpensive frames that suited him better and showed off his intelligence. He had an angular face with prominent cheekbones that was of no surprise seeing that he lacked any meat on his slim body. But when he smiled, his rich brown eyes lit up and his mouth quirked into a soft smile that really was quite sweet.  
  
'Oh goodness, I'm checking out Percy Weasley!' Hermione blushed and tried to divert that train of thought, but she didn't have to as they had already reached the shop and Oliver was holding the door open for them.  
  
Walking in gave her the same thrill that the bookstore had. In the center of the store there was a dueling mat laid out with bookshelves surrounding it on all sides. A couch was directly behind it, Hermione assumed it was there in case someone fainted in a duel that might be held on that mat. Behind the shelves she noticed a small section for clothing with a pile of brown and black gloves that Allie left to go look at. Next to that was a wall lined with restoration draughts, healing potions and other helpful items for after the duel. On the next wall were wand supplies like polish and holsters made by Ollivander himself. Then on the wall right behind her, Hermione saw about a hundred pictures or portraits of witches and wizards, though the latter far outnumbered the former, all holding their wands and some type of prize. On the more recent ones, she could see trophy cups or bags of money but the prizes seemed to vary when you went back in time. Once she thought there was a man holding the head of another wizard but it was in the shadows and Hermione did not care to look. She surmised that it was a wall of duel winners before heading into a row of books; skimming each section for the one she was looking for.  
  
After browsing through five bookcases she located her book at the very top of the shelf that easily reached twelve feet. Sighing, she grabbed a rolling ladder at the far end and dragged it to where her book was. There it was, The Big Book of Duels in its three thousand-page glory. She grabbed it and prepared to go back down when she noticed familiar voices coming from the other side of the bookcase. She climbed down a few steps until there was a hiatus in-between the books and she could clearly look down on the forms of Oliver and Percy who were leaning against the bookshelf on the other side and across from hers. They didn't notice her peeping eyes as they were too intently focused on each other. She strained to hear what they were saying.  
  
"Have you told your parents yet?" Oliver asked gently, pushing away a stray curl that fell in front of Percy's eyes.  
  
The redhead gave a dry laugh. "No, they don't even know I'm gay." Oliver sighed and leaned against their bookcase. Hermione gasped and leaned forwards on hers.  
  
"Well, surely they must have some suspicion. I mean, you sleep at my flat or hotel room at least twice a week."  
  
"You know the phrase 'ignore it and it'll go away?'" Oliver nodded. "I think it has become their motto. As for noticing my disappearance, last year they just assumed I was out with Penelope." Hermione stared slack jawed.  
  
Percy had been cheating on his girlfriend? With Oliver Wood? Not that she blamed him, but still.  
  
Percy started speaking again. "Then when I got my job they assumed I left for work really early and worked overtime. Or sometimes I locked myself in my room, asked not to be disturbed and just apparated to your flat. They always figured I was just working. It's funny that we worked so hard to make sure there were no cracks in our façades and now."  
  
"Now all we want to do is make them." Finished Oliver as he looked over at Percy who was staring at his shoes. "I missed you." He whispered and raised a hand to stroke his cheek.  
  
Percy looked up. "I missed you too. I'm sorry we can't tell my parents yet."  
  
"So we wait a few more weeks or months. I'm not going to rush you." Oliver said as he took his free hand and grabbed Percy around the waist and pulled him closer. "I love you, Perce." He bent his head and pressed a sweet kiss on his lover's mouth. Percy sighed when they broke apart and buried his head in the crook of Oliver's neck.  
  
He mumbled something that Hermione couldn't hear, but guessed that it was an 'I love you too,' seeing how Oliver's face lit up. Or maybe Oliver smiled because his boyfriend started pressing kisses to his neck because a second later he let out a soft moan and gripped Percy more tightly.  
  
Hermione now felt like she was intruding and carefully climbed back down the ladder with the book she had been clutching to her chest. She made her way to the register and waited patient behind a witch who was purchasing gloves like Allie was. Speaking of Allie, Hermione glanced to the side and noticed her waiting by the door with a shopping bag in her hand, probably with the already purchased gloves. Randolph was nowhere to be scene. Changing her gaze, Hermione stared at the pictures on the wall and did a double take at the smiling face of Albus Dumbledore. Hermione hadn't known he was a dueling champion, though it wasn't much of a surprise; the man was brilliant. But from the looks of it, he hadn't been in a professional duel for a while, seeing as how the picture was at least 70 years outdated.  
  
Scanning the pictures and looking for a familiar face or name, she spotted a Potter a few portraits away from. The picture strongly reminded her of Harry. However, instead of one wizard, the portrait held two: Mr. and Mrs. Potter, probably Harry's grandparents. It seems that they won in a double duel. Mr. Potter had brown hair that laid flat on his head and radiant blue eyes that smiled at his wife as he held her close. He had a sturdy frame with a square jaw that led Hermione to believe he was a kind but firm man. His wife on the other hand, was willowy with wavy black hair that fell down her shoulders. Her eyes were obsidian and her mouth was curved into a delicate smile. Overall, they made an attractive couple. She kept looking, as the lady in front of her was taking forever, and saw more familiar faces like Harry's father, Lucius Malfoy and even Professor Snape. She saw the younger potion master regard her with a sad stare before turning his head down. She didn't have time to find this odd as it was now her turn.  
  
After paying two Galleons and seven sickles for the book, she stood at the door with Allie who was looking at her nails in a bored manner.  
  
"Did you get what you wanted?" Allie asked.  
  
"Yes. Did you find your gloves?"  
  
"Yep, they're really nice. Where is everybody?"  
  
"I think Percy and Oliver are looking for something." Hermione lied with a delicate blush staining her face.  
  
"Like each others' tonsils?" Allie asked innocently. At Hermione's shocked face, she gave a short laugh. "I accidentally walked in on them, but they didn't notice."  
  
"Oh. Well, you mustn't tell anyone."  
  
"Don't worry. It's none of my business." They sat is silence for a while.  
  
"You really shouldn't have threatened Ron today." Hermione finally said distastefully.  
  
"Well he shouldn't have said that. I know you don't believe he should have either, seeing as you slapped him." Hermione had no comment. "Anyway, why did you go through all this trouble to find that book anyway?"  
  
Unsure what to say, Hermione quickly thought up a lie. "I wanted to study wizard wand techniques. I think they're fascinating." At least it wasn't a complete lie.  
  
"They're just a way for snobby wizards to show off their wealth and heritage. All those aristocrats spend so much time in the past reliving traditions that they never get to live their own lives. They're too busy living their families." Hermione nodded in agreement.  
  
"Like the Malfoys?"  
  
Allie looked up in surprise. "Not exactly. While people like Draco do have traditions to keep, he also has his heritage that prevents him from doing anything by the book. Not to mention the fact that Draco rebels often enough to insure that he wasn't the perfect Malfoy heir." She gave a sad smile. "I guess he needn't worry about that anymore." Before Hermione could say anymore, Oliver, Percy and Randolph walked through the bookcases smiling and joking.  
  
"Everyone make their purchases?" Oliver asked. At the girls' nods, they all strolled towards the door. As they began walking back to the Leaky Cauldron so they could floo Hermione and Allie back to the hospital, the female Gryffindor paid special attention to Oliver and Percy. She noted how they seemed to walk more closely together than anyone else and how their hands bumped together as they walked and lingered just a little too long. How Percy's eyes would light up when Oliver called him by his nickname and how Oliver smiled more brightly whenever he made his boyfriend laugh. Her musings were brought to an end when they left the alley and stood in front of the fireplace. Randolph and Allie had already left and Percy looked like he wanted to stay.  
  
"Percy, if you want, I could just go back and tell your family where you are and you could stay with Oliver to catch up." Both of their faces lit up at this suggestion.  
  
"I didn't know you were staying at the Weasley's." Oliver said to Hermione.  
  
"I'm not; the Weasleys and I are staying at St. Mungo's waiting for Harry to wake up."  
  
Oliver's face took on a worried expression. "Why's he in the hospital?"  
  
"Didn't you know?" Percy asked, "He was attacked about two weeks ago and went into a coma. He just woke up a few days ago and they say he's going to be fine." This seemed to ease Oliver's distress. "Would you like to go there?" Oliver nodded and Hermione could see how unhappy Percy was about having to share his brief time with Oliver. However, he gave a small smile a gestured to the fire. "Let's go." Hermione was first and as she traveled, she briefly thought to herself, 'What a full day of learning this has been.'  
  
**********  
  
Author's Notes: PLEASE READ!!!!!!!!!! The poll is still going on so please cast your vote. Right now I believe the standing is exactly equal, but I won't actually do any pairings until the next segment, just little hints.  
  
In case anyone is wondering what will happen now that the fifth book is out already, I have decided to make it a somewhat alternate universe but I will still be taking several events from the new book and integrating them into my story. Mostly it will be the major parts: ministry denial, the new and evil DADA teacher, some of the characters, maybe the headquarters. But some things will change, like the adult Malfoy's are dead; so that's a no go with them ever appearing in the story. I probably won't make Percy as evil as he sounds in the book because he's one of my favorites. And I'm not sure about Sirius' fate because I rather like his character....so who knows? But thanks to all my readers for reading and reviewing, especially those who cast their vote. 


	13. Pieces of the puzzle

Okay, next chapter is up. I want to thank all of my reviewers and I am so glad that everyone seemed to like, or at least they didn't hate, the Percy/Oliver part in this story. I got a little bored and added some romance because it's not going to happen between Harry and Draco for a while, but please stay tuned as it is bound to happen eventually. Also, the polling is still going on, and I believe my results are as follows:  
  
It's a tie for SS/RL and SB/RL  
  
And Ari/Sirius have two.  
  
So it looks like, in order to make the most people happy, I will have the pairings for SS/RL and Sirius/Ari. If you don't like these, then you should be voting to change it! If you do like the pairings, review anyway because it will make me happy!  
  
Hermione waited in front of the fireplace fore several minutes before Oliver and Percy floo-ed in one after the other. Three guesses what they were doing, a nasty little voice in Hermione's head said, and the first two don't count.  
  
Well, said the sweeter voice in her mind, why would they do it in public?  
  
When no answer came, she felt a slight victory in her mind war.  
  
"Hermione, have you been waiting the whole time?" Percy asked in surprise. Hermione eyes him strangely, thinking little time had passed. She glanced at her watch and noticed they had been gone for nearly twenty minutes. Oh.  
  
"Yeah, but it didn't seem like that long." They all headed up the stairs with Hermione leading the way this time. She smiled and pretended she didn't notice when they began holding hands when there was no one around. When they reached the crowded hallway, the two separated. Hermione found the replacement doctor walking around and quickly inquired how Harry was. After learning he was still asleep, the three of them left to go to the waiting room.  
  
"Oliver!" The twins shouted in surprise as they saw their ex-Quidditch captain walk into the room. She saw Snape, who must have gotten back already, curl his lip in disgust of being surrounded by yet another Gryffindor.  
  
"What are you doing here?" Fred asked.  
  
"I was just walking around Diagon Alley and ran into these two." Oliver said with a smile.  
  
"So, Oliver, dear." Mrs. Weasley started but was interrupted by a scream from down the hallway.  
  
"Son of a bitch!" Hermione saw a girl who looked like Allie but was dressed differently storm down the hallway with her wand held out and a determined look on her face.  
  
"Now, Andy." Randolph started.  
  
"I also ran into those two as well." Oliver mumbled.  
  
"I am just so pissed at that bastard. Just wait till I get my hands on him."  
  
Allie came onto the scene with an air of apathy. "What would you do if you did?" She drawled.  
  
"I'd rip off his dick and shove it so far up his ass that he would be fucking himself and wouldn't have to use someone else! Which is exactly what I'm going to do if Randolph would kindly pull off the restraint charm."  
  
"No way. You're just going to get yourself killed." Her brother said with a shake of his head.  
  
Andrea turned to look at him sadly. "She was twelve years old, Randolph. Twelve. She felt only pain and hatred as he made her bleed and then he killed her." Her voice was calm and as cold of ice. "I'm going to make sure he doesn't do it again as long as I live."  
  
"Which won't be very long if you go now." He pulled his sister close and embraced her. "You can do so much good with your life but this isn't something you're supposed to do; I can feel it in my bones." Andrea was about to burst into tears and she bit her lip hard enough to draw blood.  
  
"Andrea, I've never seen you like this. What's gotten into you?" Allie said, grabbing her twin's hand and lacing it with her own.  
  
"I just want it to stop." She said so quietly that only her siblings and Hermione who was sitting close enough could hear her. "Please, make it stop." She finally broke down and slumped to the floor with her brother and sister surrounding her. "I don't want to see anymore. I don't want it." She pleaded and Randolph pulled her up and carried her back into her room. Allie stooped low and grabbed her sister's wand before following the sobs down the hallway.  
  
"What was that?" Sirius asked.  
  
Albus looked grave for a second before answering. "Some gifts are not always beneficial to the receiver and that is an example of a most taxing gift." They all sat in silence for a moment before the twins turned back to Oliver in an attempt to liven the atmosphere.  
  
"So, Oliver, congratulations on being put in the game last week." George said from his chess game with Ron. Hermione could tell which twin it was because Fred couldn't play chess to save his life.  
  
"Thanks George." Oliver beamed. He obviously could tell the twins apart as well.  
  
"I didn't know you were put in the game." Percy whispered, looking a little hurt. Oliver shot him a concerned look before being distracted by Charlie.  
  
"It was amazing. You must have blocked like 40 shots in less than an hour and a half!" Charlie said.  
  
Percy excused himself and walked down the corridor. Oliver made like he was going to go after him but Hermione pushed him down in his seat and went after Percy.  
  
She found him sitting on a hospital gurney swinging his legs like a lost child. "Are you all right, Percy?" He looked up, startled.  
  
"Oh, Hermione." He sighed.  
  
"Call me Herm. Your brothers do." He gave her a sad smile.  
  
"Okay. You may call me Perce if you'd like. My brothers do." She smiled at the intended mocking of her last sentence.  
  
"So does your lover." She smiled as his eyes widened almost comically. His mouth began opening and closing as he looked for the right words. "I saw you guys making out behind a bookcase." Hermione giggled as Percy blushed. "Is it getting hard between you guys?"  
  
Percy nodded sadly. "It was so much easier at school." Now Hermione sputtered.  
  
"At school? How long have you guys been together?"  
  
"Three and a half years."  
  
"What about Penelope?"  
  
He sighed and leaned against the wall that the gurney was against. "We dated for a couple months. I think I was trying to convince myself that I wasn't gay and that I didn't find him attractive and that it really was just a coincidence that I happened to take showers the same time that he did." Hermione laughed. "I guess I was just trying to figure a few things out.  
  
"Did you?" Hermione prodded.  
  
"It was kind of hard with exams coming up, school work, prefect duties and then balancing a girlfriend and my growing attraction to my dorm mate and best friend."  
  
"What happened?" This story was better than those sleazy paperbacks with the half naked men and scantily clad women on the cover that her dorm mates kept hidden under their beds.  
  
"Well, Oliver knew he was gay before I did and was always more comfortable with it. I think he picked up on my desire for him because one night when I was working late in the library, he came in from Quidditch practice, grabbed my hand and threw me into the mechanics division over in the muggle section. He pushed me against a wall and kissed me. More like molested me." Hermione laughed again and Percy smiled at her.  
  
"I'm guessing you allowed yourself to be molested?" She added slyly.  
  
"Until the early hours of the morning." They both laughed at this. "Anyway, I finally got back to my dorm with Oliver and fell asleep. Luckily it was Saturday so I still had a day before I had to face everyone. So I locked myself up in the Prefects lounge until Penelope found me and asked me what I was doing. I told her my dilemma about my sexuality. So she kissed me and I felt nothing. No sparks or passion like I did with Oliver. With her it felt wrong, awkward. With him, we just fit. So we broke up."  
  
"But you and Penelope were still dating in seventh year." Hermione pointed out.  
  
"True, but it was just a front. Penelope is one of my best friends now and also is my relationship counselor, which is why I was writing so many letters to her that summer."  
  
"What about now?" His smile began to fade and he looked worried.  
  
"It isn't always easy for us; he's gone at Quidditch practice and I work long hours at my job. It also doesn't help that I haven't told my parents about us."  
  
This is what had confused Hermione before. "Why not?"  
  
Percy paused for a moment. "I don't know what to tell them. He was on the Quidditch team with my brothers and Harry, Ron used to speak to him every Saturday about game tactics. Not to mention the fact that Oliver's parents and my father work at the Ministry together and our mothers are both in some garden club. Ginny had a crush on him, for goodness sakes!" He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "I have imagined it a hundred times, what it would be like. 'Hey everybody. Oliver and I.yes George, I do mean your ex-Quidditch captain.I'm sure he's fine Fred.. No Ron, I don't believe he knows the Cannons. Anyway, what I'm trying to tell you is that.Mom, I'm sure the lavender she's growing is turning out well.Oliver and I are.Dad, you can talk to his parents in the morning.yes, I understand that you are working on something very important with them.Hey.Everybody.. Shut up!' Then there will be silence throughout the whole house and I will be so upset that I'll yell 'I'm fucking Oliver!' and then I'll realize what I've said and run to my room. Chaos will break out and they'll all try to break into my room. Fred and George will slap me on the back in congratulations, Mum will wonder what I mean exactly and father will owl in sick because he is too embarrassed to face the Woods at work." When he finished, he looked to Hermione who was laughing so hard that she nearly fell off the gurney.  
  
"Oh my. I can only imagine. Let me be there when this happens." She said as she calmed down. "But why did you get upset it there?" She said, pointing to the waiting room.  
  
"I don't know. I guess I'm just frustrated that he won't tell me things about his job. Like I said, we only spend a few days together and that's usually when Oliver likes to talk about the exciting stuff, face to face, but then when he's here, we don't end up talking so nothing gets said. Plus it's the fact that I can't spend time with him now. I've waited two months to see him in person for more than just a few hours and now he's in there. With my parents." Percy sighed again before watching Hermione jump to her feet.  
  
"I think we should go back. I'm sure Oliver has been panicking since you ran off. He wanted to come here but I thought it would be better if I came." Percy gave an affirmative nod. "But just a word of advice: tell your parents. They'll understand and it will help your relationship with Oliver."  
  
"You're right. I'm just being childish. Let's go and pray I don't blurt something crude out in front of my mother." They walked back and saw everyone still sitting where they were before. As Hermione predicted, Oliver was tense and throwing surreptitious glances in the direction that Percy had gone. When he caught sight of the redhead, he gave an unsure smile and was rewarded with a more confident one. Percy squeezed into the seat next to Oliver and secretly stealthily held his hand between their bodies.  
  
"Geez, Perce, what was that all about?" Fred asked, startling Oliver and Percy from their brief staring contest.  
  
"Oh." He blushed slightly and stumbled over his next words in an attempt to make up a lie. "I-I thought I had forgotten something." His mother raised an eyebrow at the flimsy attempt.  
  
"Yes." Hermione said, not taking her eyes off Percy. "He gave me something to watch and I forgot I had it."  
  
"Which is why you went after him." Oliver said confidently.  
  
"You're so smart to figure that out, Oliver." Ginny said dreamily, earning twin eye rolls from Fred and George, a blush by Oliver and two carefully concealed giggles from Percy and Hermione.  
  
***********  
  
Draco watched as the siblings dragged their sister back to her bed and force-fed her a sleeping draught. He hadn't remembered exactly why she had gotten up and stormed off but he could guess the reason and unfortunately for her, it was a common occurrence. The goblet that Andrea had left was still steaming on his tray and Draco quickly threw it back, grimacing at the taste before laying down for a dreamless rest.  
  
When he awoke the next day in the afternoon, he noticed that Andrea had left already. Rather than try and find her, Draco decided to head back to his room and shower. He crept past everyone in the waiting room who were, thankfully, asleep. Once in his room he showered and prepared to change clothes except that he realized that he had none here. Sighing, he gathered his towel and stalked out of the room in an attempt to find some clean pajamas from the hospital. In the midst of his stalking, he nearly missed his trunk and practically toppled over it in an ungraceful sprawl.  
  
He let out a soft hiss as he rubbed his palms that had saved him from fall and smiled at the thought of one of the siblings or Snape retrieving his trunk. Then he smiled wider for actually having clothes.  
  
It seemed that the siblings were always taking care of him, and Draco admitted that he was glad they were. Like Andrea had said in the waiting room to Harry.  
  
His heart rate sped up a little at the name but surmised that it was because he called his enemy by his first name. Draco had to admit that that slip-up was occurring more and more frequently and he didn't particularly seem too keen to fix it. Ignoring that thought, he returned his mind to the siblings who had nearly adopted him.  
  
Because he retained memory from an early age, Draco could recall the lonely years when his parents barely allowed him to have contact with anyone other than them, the elves or the ghosts. However, talking to the elves was rare and at four years old, the ghosts scared him, especially One-Hand Carson, a petty thief who had been caught at the Manor and then had his hand cut off and was strangled on the front lawn. That specific spirit roamed around the halls brandishing a bloodied wrist and hollering at all of the inhabitants. At least he had until Lucius Malfoy caught the ghost mercilessly spooking his hysteric four-year-old son. Since then, the deceased thief was forced to prey on unsuspecting villagers who approached the mansion's walls.  
  
Draco inwardly smiled as he pulled on a pair of blue jeans. His father was always doing things like that for him. Or he had until the year before Hogwarts. That year the young Malfoy heir was taught how to act in a cold detached manner, for in the future, his father had said, it was better to have people follow you in fear than in faith. Faith only stretched so far and most wizards would do most anything to live if that privilege of life was threatened. He remembered when he was seven and more than anything, he wanted to have a friend to play with, not the tutors who came almost everyday.  
  
Father had been firm about friends, Draco mused while drying his hair. That day almost eight years ago popped up in his mind. A younger Draco had been sitting on the floor mimicking his father writing out important documents. Lucius had smiled at his son fondly but dropped that sign of amusement when Draco asked if he could have someone over to play with.  
  
'No, my young dragon, for friends are only enemies who have not yet turned on you.'  
  
And that was it. It was a wonder how he was allowed to keep his supposed 'cousins' around with that attitude. Now that he had the chance to think about it, his father always was a suspicious man, himself in general and of other people. Now his mother.  
  
Draco fingered his neck gingerly and proceeded to pull on a gray sweater. Narcissa Malfoy was always composed. Never surprised or frightened on the outside. She made a perfect wife: good breeding, attractive, mild mannered and independently wealthy. Earlier this summer he remembered his mother was eating lunch with him when Voldemort strolled in waving his wand and talking about some killing in the newspaper. The Dark Lord then grabbed a roll that was sitting on her plate and took a bite while continuing to walk around the table. And there his mother was, completely unfazed. She simply looked up and tsked at the guest.  
  
'Really, Tom, use a plate.'  
  
Use a plate! His mother had just scolded one of the most powerful wizards of their time and Voldemort even had the decency to look abashed. Never had Draco felt so much respect for his mother for he doubted whether even his father could get away with reprimanding him and calling him by his first name. Then again, Voldemort always liked his mother.  
  
'Thought of her as a pet, more like it.' Draco thought bitterly, shuddering in remembrance of the event that landed him here, where Voldemort was sitting in his parlor chair stroking his mother's head that had a vacant look in her eyes and was mewling like a docile kitten. A kitten that had claws. The blonde boy sighed and brushed his teeth using a spell; it wasn't like the ministry could detect it here where there was so much magic floating around.  
  
He glanced at his reflection, glad for once that this mirror didn't talk. He had definitely lost weight, making his figure even slimmer but the lack of sun seemed not to affect him, as he was pale all year round. His hair hung loosely to his chin, un-gelled because of the absence of the substance in his trunk, which was probably Andrea or Allie's doing seeing how they hated the slicked-back look. He scanned the neck of his sweater and was relieved to find that the high neck hid the incision that was the reason he was in St. Mungo's.  
  
The Slytherin strode out of the bathroom and pulled on a pair of dragon hide boots before grabbing a bag of money and stepping out into the hallway. He waved cheekily to the nurses who swooned slightly as he added a bit of veela force to it. Briefly he thought that using that charm wasn't such a good idea in a hospital but he was on a mission to find coffee and their would be no holds barred until he found the beverage.  
  
He found a coffee machine in the far corner of the waiting room, of course at that time he had no idea where he was or who else was in the room.  
  
"Hallelujah!" He cried as he stepped up to the machine and hugged it tightly. "How have I survived without you machine of miracles, brewer of brown beverages, carrier of caffeine.?" He then proceeded to place his knuts in the change slot and receive his coffee.  
  
"Machine of Miracles, Malfoy?" Said a familiar voice from the doorway. Draco turned around and spotted Harry Potter leaning against the doorframe with a slight smirk on his face. The Slytherin just managed to contain his shock look before retorting.  
  
"Working on your alliteration, Potter?"  
  
"No, it seemed like you were, though." Draco flushed slightly and glared at Harry who just laughed.  
  
"I really needed the coffee." He sniffed indignantly.  
  
"Its just coffee." Harry scoffed and secretly smiled when Draco's eyes widened.  
  
"Just coffee? Sacrilege Potter. Half the world needs this to survive."  
  
"That's right, what would we do without the, in Draco's case, addictive drug, that stunts people's growth. Which is also in Draco's case." Both boys turned back towards the doorway where Andrea stood smiling at their interaction.  
  
Draco's eyes narrowed. "What are you implying?" Andrea went up to Draco and stood almost flush against him and everyone could see that the top of the blonde's head only reached eye level with her. At Harry's laugh, he shot them both dirty looks. "Oh bugger off, Andrea. You're at least a year older." He then turned to the side, preparing to leave, when he noticed a whole waiting room of people staring at him. Draco then used some colorful language that made Harry raise an eyebrow.  
  
"Did not know that was actually possible." Harry murmured to the hospital aid that giggled at Draco's language.  
  
"Mr. Potter and Mr. Malfoy." Dumbledore said happily. "I'm relieved to find you both up and in good humor."  
  
"Yes, we were deeply worried." Snape said, though it was directed more to Draco than to Harry.  
  
"Harry!" Harry turned to face Ron and Hermione who were both running to greet him. "Are you okay? It's good to see you lucid again!" Ron said as he thumped him on the back.  
  
"Lucid?" He looked around at his family and friends and noticed them all smiling. "What did I do?" Andrea burst out laughing and Ron inched away from her, not remembering that she was the good twin.  
  
"Why are you laughing? You weren't there." Hermione frowned at the girl. She couldn't explain it, but there was something about this girl that was off. Her outburst last night proved it, though oddly enough, she seemed to have recovered.  
  
She straightened up and grinned at the female Gryffindor. "I have eyes all over this place. Believe me, I know what happened." With that, she turned to Draco who had been surveying the scene with interest. "And you, Drake, what are you doing up?"  
  
"Relax. I'm fine and not in danger of dying." He glared at her and prepared to sit down and nurse his cup of coffee while the others stood around and talked. He swallowed a large gulp but proceeded to spit it out when his throat felt like it was on fire. He slumped in the chair and gasped for breath and tried to assuage the pain in his throat.  
  
"Fool." Andrea muttered with distaste and she grabbed a potion from a belt that she wore around her waist. It must have been new because Harry didn't remember seeing it before. "Take this. Swirl it around in your mouth six times before swallowing." Draco did as told and closed his eyes in concentration. Andrea grabbed a syringe that was in a pouch on her belt and quickly filled it with a light green potion. On the Slytherin's six swirl he began to swallow when his cousin stabbed him in his upper arm with the needle. He barely managed to contain his potion in his mouth. "Ow! Bitch!" He nursed his arm and stormed off.  
  
"It's your own fault." She shrugged at Harry. "What am I going to do with that boy...hmm...his bed does have those wonderful restraints. Bye Harry, dear!" She flounced off after Draco and Harry felt slight pity for him.  
  
"That family is bizarre." Hermione stated.  
  
"And slightly evil." Ron continued in a dazed look.  
  
"They seem okay to me." Harry wanted to say but was cut off by two people talking rapidly coming from behind him. The Gryffindor pressed himself up against the wall and smiled slightly as the two people, Joe and his fiancée Caitlin, stopped and turned around once they noticed they passed Harry.  
  
"Harry!" Joe cried and began to spoke animatedly. "We've got theories. Tons! I stayed up all night thinking and researching."  
  
"I can vouch for that." Caitlin said in a dry voice.  
  
"Gee, I can't contain my excitement. Let's go before I burst." Harry said sarcastically and gestured for the couple to lead the way. This was also a way to keep his powers under wraps from his family and friends. He didn't need a new variable complicating their lives.  
  
"That's the spirit!" Joe enthused, ignoring his patient's tone. To Harry, Joe reminded him of Oliver Wood right before a game. He led Harry down the hallway and a third of the Gryffindor trio wave back to the other two thirds.  
  
When they reached the end of the hall, Harry was almost pushed into the room. He had a helmet place on his head and Joe began a rapid one way dialogue with Harry about all the equipment. It seemed like it was a room of clairvoyance, established by witches and wizards with physic gifts. There were machines in all corners surrounded by stacks of tarot cards, crystal balls and other tools.  
  
"Okay, this will gauge your telepathic level." 'This', as it turned out, was a three-pronged metal helmet with a prong on each side ending at his temples and one coming up in front stopping in the middle of his forehead. [Think X-Men the Movie.]  
  
"Are you ready, Harry?" Caitlin asked quietly. At his nod, she pulled a lever and the couple stood back to watch it work. To the viewer, it seemed like the machine was shooting volts of purple energy over his head. To Harry, it felt like it was emptying his mind and clearing it of all the clutter. It was a singular sensation that resulted in no pain, something Harry was grateful for. When it ended, the energy bolts retracted and Harry opened his eyes having no idea how long he had been under the machine.  
  
It wasn't brief because Joe had moved from in front of him to his side and was now going over parchments that were writing their own words. Caitlin gently eased him out of the chair he was in and removed the helmet before guiding them both over to the doctor.  
  
"Look, Cait, it's amazing. He rates high and it's only been a day." He pushed the papers under her nose and began to check out Harry. "How are you feeling?"  
  
"Fine. What does the test say?" Harry said as he tried to read the papers but only noticed weird symbols.  
  
"Well, the scale was based on 1-12, in two divisions: the first and the second. So technically, there are 24 divisions in where could fall. A twelve ranks higher than one and the first division is stronger than the second. You rank." He skimmed over the papers again and pointed out what he was talking about. "Here. First division, level 7. Over time, your gifts will grow; you might end up ranking at a ten. I doubt you'd go much higher than that as there are only thirty-two others who rank higher than a ten who are alive today."  
  
"How much do telepaths normally grow?" Harry said as he studied the papers Caitlin had passed to him.  
  
"Varies." Caitlin picked up. "One witch once went from Second Division, level four to First Division, level three. However, most, especially those who rank high in the beginning, only go up about two or three levels." She fiddled around with the machine for a moment or two and Joe leaned back against the wall in deep thought.  
  
After a moments pause, Harry broke the silence. "Now what?"  
  
"Well, we could play guinea pig some more." Joe said devilishly and smiled at the look of fear on his patients face. "Or you could go back to your room and rest or talk to the people in the waiting room."  
  
"I'm thinking the waiting room sounds good." He said as he pulled himself off the chair and headed to the door. "Are you guys coming?" Joe nodded and stretched out a hand for Caitlin who grabbed it and swung it as they walked out the door with Harry walking behind them.  
  
'So, I'm a telepath.' Harry thought as he walked slowly behind them. It didn't seem like such a shock in the daytime, especially after having last night to process all of it. Last year had been rough, but it seemed that at the end of every year, he learned something new about himself, the enigma that was Harry Potter. He snorted to himself as he thought this for enigma was just another word for riddle and by blood that's what he was.  
  
Now wasn't the time for humor, however. Self-depreciating jokes were always more amusing at night anyways. Now he had to figure out what to do. Harry supposed he could try and contact a higher-level telepath and try to receive training or advice from them. Or Dumbledore, maybe. The man did seem to have a knack for knowing things that were unsaid so it was quite possible that the Headmaster might have telepathic skills, though Harry doubted it.  
  
All too soon, before he had though of a game plan, they were all back in the room. It seemed that he must have been standing there for a while because his doctor and his fiancée had moved across the room and were talking to Lupin. Harry snapped himself out of his thoughts and ran to sit by Hermione and Ron, sandwiching himself between the two.  
  
"Hello my Gryffindor companions." Harry said lightly.  
  
"Harry!" Hermione squealed as she hugged her friend, as did Ron, resulting in a large group hug.  
  
"How sweet." Fred said.  
  
"Where's Creevey when you need him?" George said while thumping Harry on the back and returning to their positions on the floor and their game of Exploding Snap.  
  
"Hello Fred and George. How's the pranking business?" Harry asked with mirth dancing in his eyes.  
  
"Brilliant!" George grinned.  
  
Fred picked up, as one of them normally did when their twin spoke. "Some well-to-do invested in us."  
  
"Whoever it was probably wasn't right in the head." Percy mumbled from his seat with Oliver.  
  
"Too right. Or he's a sadist who wishes to see the whole world suffer at the hands of your brothers." Oliver replied flashing a grin at the twins who looked slightly put off.  
  
"Ollie! Our tricks aren't harmful!" Fred cried.  
  
"Your second year. Great Hall, think Snape." Oliver replied pointedly.  
  
Both twins gave a mischievous smile. "That was a good year."  
  
"Oliver! What are you doing here?" Harry said, pleasantly surprised. He then saw how close his ex-captain was sitting next to Percy and understood. "Oh. Right."  
  
Percy looked flabbergasted. "How did you know?"  
  
Mimicking Oliver, Harry replied. "My third year. After the Cup, think Quidditch shed." Percy flushed and Oliver merely looked amused.  
  
"That was a good sh-" He trailed off suggestively and at his boyfriend's look added, "-ed." At the twins' odd look he continued. "What? I happen to like fine craftsmanship."  
  
"Do you feel like we're missing something?" George said to Fred.  
  
"I feel like it. Come on, Perce, spill." Charlie said, sitting down and joining the conversation.  
  
Looking at Oliver nervously, he was met with blue eyes full of assurance. He took a deep breath and turned to face his three brothers. "Well, the truth is-"  
  
Percy stopped when he saw Draco rush in from the opposite way he left about an hour earlier.  
  
He scanned the room anxiously and found Harry's face before clambering over bodies and standing in front of the Trio. "Potter, hate to ask a favor, but could you please hide me for a bit?" Harry gave him a skeptical look.  
  
"Why?" He asked, slightly unsure and heavily amused.  
  
"I'll tell you in a moment." He looked around panicked before Harry began to believe him and moved his legs so the Slytherin could hide under the rows of chairs. Hermione looked surprised at his willingness to crawl under hospital furniture but didn't say a word. The next moment, Randolph walked in again, seemingly intent on searching for someone; most likely it was Draco.  
  
"Has anyone seen a bleached blonde midget with an addiction to coffee and squeals like a girl when upset?" Ron barely managed to contain his laughter as Harry nudged him to be quiet while he lied smoothly.  
  
"Nope, not since he left an hour ago."  
  
Snape picked up. "Why did you want to see him?"  
  
"Well, Sev," Ron double-took on the first name basis between these two strangers (in Ron's eyes). "It appears that-" But he was cut off as Andrea entered with Allie, their arms linked and they were both marching in step.  
  
"Forget why we need him."  
  
"Yeah. He's under Harry's legs." Andrea gestured to where Harry was sitting.  
  
"How did you know that?" Hermione asked in surprise.  
  
"Like I said, eyes everywhere." She rolled her eyes and both girls snickered as Randolph pulled Draco out and swung him over his shoulders. "See, little cousin, you can't hide from-Oh!" Her sentence finished with a moan as her legs gave her, pulling Allie down with her.  
  
"Andy? Are you okay?" Her sister asked gently. She just closed her eyes in reply and continued resting on the floor, clutching her head. Her twin sister grabbed her hand and both sat on the ground for a moment.  
  
Harry watched in amazement as Randolph gently dropped Draco and grabbed her other hand and began sitting with his two siblings. It was then that Harry felt a buzz of noise swell up in his head like it had last night.  
  
"Oh, no. Not now!" Harry thought as he tried to push out his telepath abilities that were phasing in again. "Bullocks." Was his last thought before he got sucked into someone's mind. He closed his eyes and when he opened them, he was standing in front of a cottage with three other people who were looking through the window.  
  
Getting a closer look, only one was, Andrea, as Allie and Randolph had their eyes closed as if they were sleeping. Harry glanced at the window and his eyes widened as he watched an elderly wizard get hit with the Killing Curse before crumpling on the floor with two other bodies.  
  
"Oh my God." He whispered but that slight noise attracted Andrea's attention.  
  
"Harry? What are you doing here?" She asked in confusion.  
  
*******  
  
Okay, as for what to do about Sirius, I'm thinking of keeping him alive. I didn't like that he died and if Harry can be with Draco, then gosh darn it, Sirius can still be alive. So basically for every event in OoTP that I didn't like, I will put someone else in his or her place. Like Percy. He's one of my favorites but I just wanted to smack him. Oh well, that's all. Keep reading and reviewing and sorry this was so late but me and my beta were having some conflicts about my story because somehow half of the chapter disappeared, right in the middle and it took us days to figure out why they started and ended in the same place but were completely different lengths. 


	14. Out in the open

Sorry for the lack of update in a while. No excuse really. I figured out a while ago that italics or bold fonts don't work on my story when I submit them to ff.net and I tried leaving big gaps of spaces and that didn't work either so I'm sorry if anyone was confused in the previous chapters. That's all except that I want to thank all of my reviewers and my beta because you've all been so wonderful, but I feel that will come to an end with this chapter and I would like to apologize if you guys don't like what I've done. Oh well, if you don't like it send your reviews anyway. Thanks!  
  
"Harry? What are you doing here?" She asked in confusion.  
  
"What is this place?" He asked, ignoring her question. She ignored his question and held up a hand for him to be silent.  
  
"Oh, damn, we're too late." She pointed out a calendar and sure enough, it was two days ago. The door creaked open to Harry's side and he jumped but remembered that nobody besides Andrea could see him. Three Death Eaters marched out single file. One was stupid enough to remove his mask. Both teens studied the woman's face but Harry couldn't recognize her. He did, however, identify the shorter follower for it wasn't hard with the silver hand attached to his wrist.  
  
"Wormtail." Harry spat out bitterly.  
  
"And Morganna Bulstrode. No surprise there." Harry's eyes widened at his fellow classmate's last name but said nothing. "Now who is the third?" Sure enough, the man removed his mask also and wiped his brow with a handkerchief. "Nott." Harry shivered at the name; this man had been at Voldemort's birth while he was suspended on a gravestone. "Hold tight." She grabbed his hand and a few moments later, they were pulled back out. He opened his eyes again and was surrounded with the curious and concerned faces of Ron, Hermione and Sirius. It seemed that at some point Harry had fallen on the floor for he was looking up at everybody and his neck was uncomfortably propped on the edge of his chair.  
  
"Harry!" Sirius said as he hesitantly moved closer to his godson, not sure if he was still the object of his anger. Harry noticed this uncertain move and flashed him a reassuring smile while he struggled to his feet.  
  
"It's okay, Sirius. I'm not mad anymore." The older man's face broke out into a large grin and he scooped his godson in a hug. "Oh, and sorry for throwing you against the wall." Harry said as he studied his godfather's face and noticed the slight yellow color from a bruise that was going away. It must have been healed magically for it to be so far along. Then suddenly, remembering where he had been and who he had been with, Harry broke through the throng of people and rushed to Andrea's side where her brother and sister and all of Harry's professors were tending to her. "Hey, are you okay?"  
  
She gave a wry smile and dusted off the back of her St. Mungo's robe. "I could ask the same of you. " She turned towards the rest of the group. "I believe a conference is in order. Harry was pulled into my-" She stopped and shook her head. "This is why we need the conference. Let's go." Harry waved good-bye to everyone and followed the strange group out to his room. There, Harry sat at the head of his bed with Andrea sharing the foot of it with Allie. Draco, who had just entered the room, reclined in the middle while Snape took the chair and Randolph took an arm of it. Professor Dumbledore conjured two more chairs for him and McGonagall. All of them had a serious look on their face and both twins began to fidget nervously.  
  
"Oh, no." Harry groaned as he realized what was going on. "Headmaster, I thought you said there were going to be no more secrets that were going to be revealed."  
  
"This one isn't yours, I don't think." Draco muttered as he threw an arm over his face to shield his eyes from the light. "Is it?" When Snape shook his head he relaxed back onto the bed. "Besides, what secrets have been revealed to you anyways?"  
  
Harry ignored him. "Then whose it about?" Harry asked, slightly confused.  
  
All of the siblings raised a hand and Snape, after much prodding from the young man on the arm of his chair, raised his hand too.  
  
"As our story starts out," Andrea began but was interrupted by her brother.  
  
"Let Sev tell it, alright?" She nodded and gestured from the Potions Professor to begin.  
  
"Fine, when I was nineteen, I got married." Snape began sounding bored with his own story.  
  
"And to a woman. It's shocking." Draco said, smirking while Harry laughed lightly and Snape shot him a menacing glare.  
  
"Well, we're all not bisexual like you are." He shot back and Draco retaliated by sticking his tongue out.  
  
"Well, that's new." Harry said to himself quietly.  
  
"I wouldn't say bisexual," Randolph began, "I mean, he isn't human in the first place."  
  
"Not entirely human." Draco pointed out.  
  
Randolph raised a hand and dismissed the statement. "Whatever. He's sleeping with different species, which is odd."  
  
"I'm the only wizard/elf/veela there is, or that I know of. I have no one else in my species!" Draco shot back.  
  
"While Mr. Malfoy's sexual preference is interesting, it is not while we're here." McGonagall pointed out. "Continue Severus."  
  
"Anyway, the woman that I married, a Ravenclaw a few years older than I was, already had a son."  
  
"Me!" Randolph shouted as he waved a hand in the air.  
  
"Yes." Snape said sourly, but gazed at Randolph fondly. "And we eventually had two daughters."  
  
Now the twins jumped in. "Us!"  
  
"Snape had sex? It's scandalous!" Draco said, making Harry fall over with laughter and Professor Snape casting a silencing spell on him.  
  
Then the amused Gryffindor shot up with realization. "Oh my God. You two are Snape's daughters?" At their nods he tried to process the information. "That was definitely unexpected."  
  
"Yes, I can see how it's hard to see the resemblance, but lets get back to the story, shall we? What I didn't find out until a few years later was that my wife had a special gift. A hereditary gift."  
  
"Which was?" Harry said, trying to move past Snape having daughters and those offspring being the two girls that sat in front of him.  
  
"A diviner. A seer to be more exact." Allie said from her spot and then moved to lie on Draco's stomach.  
  
"With empathic powers." Andrea said and seeing Harry's confused look she added, "She was really in tune with other people emotions."  
  
"So you three are all seers?" The Gryffindor asked; he was finally beginning to understand the recent events.  
  
"No. Most seers are females so the gift skipped Randolph." Snape began again.  
  
"But I did receive her empathy." The young man pointed out.  
  
"And because we were twins, the powers split up between us." Andrea explained.  
  
"I'm an empath like Randolph and Andrea received the gift of sight." Her sister continued.  
  
"So let me get this straight, in your weird family, you are a seer," He pointed at Andrea and continued to do it to the others whose powers he called, "You two possess the gift of empathy and you are some weird magical hybrid with bisexual tendencies." The last was pointed to Draco who tried to protest at the hybrid part but was still under the silencing spell.  
  
"But our freaky family doesn't end there." Allie began.  
  
"Don't tell me these two are your grandparents?" Harry said, gesturing towards his other professors.  
  
"No," Dumbledore chuckled.  
  
"It seems that you, Harry, are our-" Randolph said.  
  
"Our uncle's cousin's half-sister's brother-in-law's daughter's roommate." Andrea said and Allie quickly followed.  
  
"Which makes us?"  
  
Together they said the last bit. "Absolutely nothing!" At Harry's odd look they quickly whispered 'muggle movie' before letting Randolph continue.  
  
"Well, we are actually of no relation, but to Andrea and Allie, you're their second cousin once removed. And Sev here is your second cousin. It's not much, though."  
  
Harry stopped paying attention and turned to Dumbledore. "What did I say?" he said in slight anger. "It was just a few days ago." When the old man simply looked confused, Harry sighed and repeated his words from earlier. "No long lost siblings or anything?"  
  
"Technically, they're not siblings." Draco pointed out, once the silencing spell wore off. Harry gave him a slight glare before grabbing his wand and recasting the spell.  
  
"It wasn't our secret to tell, Harry. Just like yours isn't." Dumbledore said gravely, giving his pupil a significant look.  
  
"What is your secret?" Andrea asked interestedly.  
  
He took a deep breath before continuing in a monotone voice. "Heir of both Slytherin and Gryffindor with the ability to talk to snakes and I'm telepathic."  
  
"Impossible." Snape said. "Voldemort's the last heir of Slytherin. That would make you-"  
  
"His grandson." He replied wearily. "I know, it's mad."  
  
"And I thought my family was freaky." Allie murmured.  
  
"You've got nothing on me. Escaped convict for a godfather, heir of both Gryffindor and Slytherin, grandson of psychotic racist murder, second cousin once removed from a seer and an empath, and second cousin to my Potions Professor. Plus, I have my magic hating aunt and uncle and their whale of a son Dudley." He groaned and flopped on the bed while the siblings and Draco laughed. Well tried to in Draco's case because he still wasn't able to make a sound. "I have more family than I can stand."  
  
They laughed for a bit and it seemed that even Snape seemed to perk up a bit.  
  
But it was Dumbledore that broke the light mood when he grasped everything Harry had said.  
  
"Harry?" This grabbed everyone's attention and they looked up and stared at the Headmaster. "You're a telepath?"  
  
"You mean you didn't know?" Andrea asked in surprise. "He usually knows everything!" She said this to Allie who nodded her head.  
  
"Oh! I forgot, sorry Professor." Harry admitted sheepishly. "I only found out last night, which is why Dr. Joe and Caitlin took me away this afternoon. They were testing my level."  
  
"Which is?" Randolph asked interestedly.  
  
Harry tried for a few seconds to remember the number when it finally popped into his head. "First Division, Level Seven, I believe."  
  
"Not bad." Allie said, shifting to give Harry a wink.  
  
"Thanks." He said blushing slightly in modesty.  
  
Dumbledore and McGonagall exchanged significant looks. "Now we must decide what precautions we should take next year." He opened his mouth to say more but was cut off when the door swung open revealing Joe dressed in his white robes again.  
  
"Hello Harry." He quickly surveyed the room before adding, "And Harry's friends. Am I interrupting something?" He asked, preparing to back out of the door.  
  
"No!" Harry cried, stalling him. "You weren't interrupting anything. What did you need?" He asked calmly as he sat back on his bed and leaned against the wall.  
  
"Just wanted to do a P.I spell." Harry nodded at this and waited for him to continue.  
  
As Joe said the spell, he heard Allie whisper to Andrea something. "A private investigator spell?"  
  
"No, idiot, Personal Information spell." He saw Andrea roll her eyes at her sister and they all watched as the golden words formed in between Harry and the doctor.  
  
"Huh." Joe muttered as he cast the spell again. "That's odd."  
  
Harry looked slightly panicked at that. "What's odd?" He asked apprehensively.  
  
Seeing his patient's face, he shot him a reassuring grin. "Don't worry; it's nothing bad. Good in fact."  
  
"Well, what is it?" He asked impatiently.  
  
"It seems that all that negative magical energy I was telling you about-" Harry gave a nod to show that he understood, "Well, it seems like over seventy percent of it is gone."  
  
"I did black out for half a day." Harry pointed out.  
  
"I can vouch for that." Draco said, once he got his voice back. Harry wasn't sure whether Draco was defending him in terms of being loyal or just trying to have the spotlight again and annoy as many people as he could to get it. He was willing to bet his fortune that it was the latter.  
  
"That shouldn't remove it all, should it?" McGonagall questioned.  
  
"Nope, not even twenty percent." Joe replied.  
  
"Maybe it's because I'm telepathic."  
  
"And you're drawing magical energy to use it." Andrea concluded.  
  
"That can't be right." Snape said at last. "Think what would happen if he didn't have that excess magic. He would have been drained for days."  
  
"Wait," Harry said brightly, being unusually optimistic. "Does this mean I can leave soon?"  
  
Joe sighed. "I guess so, but I wouldn't feel comfortable if you went back to the Dursleys. What would happen if the magic came back or if it was the telepathic ability that was draining you and you collapsed for days?"  
  
"He could stay with us!" Allie suggested, shooting a pleading look to her brother.  
  
He conceded, though it was rather hesitant. "He's welcome to stay with us, but, oh, I don't know." He ran a hand through his hair and leaned back on the shoulder of the chair. "I'd be working and I know that although you two are capable of taking care of yourselves, I'm not sure you could take care of another person."  
  
"He could stay at Hogwarts." Dumbledore suggested. "If it's too much of a problem for you Randolph, but I don't really approve of the idea of a teenage boy staying all alone in a huge castle for almost a month.  
  
"What about the rat pack?" Draco suggested.  
  
"Hey!" Harry said in an offended tone.  
  
"Sorry. What about the Weasel Pack?" He received an elbow from Harry who glared at him but with little animosity behind it.  
  
"It's too open for attack. If Harry was sent there, it'd be the first place Voldemort would look." Only Joe flinched at the name and even that was only just slightly.  
  
"True, Severus, very true." Dumbledore mused. "Harry, what would you like to do?"  
  
The Gryffindor sat up in shock and quickly shook his head no. "Uh-uh. No way am I going to make decisions about where I stay. I inconvenience people and I rather that punishment be assigned by someone else."  
  
"You're not an inconvenience." Randolph said. "We'd be glad to have you. You could keep these two from hitting the bars." He smiled and then turned white when he noticed the father of the two girls turn red in anger. Draco just snickered in delight.  
  
"What was this about bars?" Snape asked testily.  
  
"What?" Allie asked while feigning confusion. "Bars? Us? Crazy talk."  
  
"Yeah, that was just our dear brother's sad attempt to be funny."  
  
"A failed attempt."  
  
"That's right." Draco said in mock-seriousness. "The Snapes do not support underage drinking." He gave Snape a pointed look, knowing full well that his professor had not abided by the laws when he was a teenager.  
  
"Bite me, you little smart-" Snape began but was cut off by Dumbledore.  
  
"Now, Severus, let's not speak to our students like that. We should be concentrating on where Harry should stay."  
  
"That's right," Draco said in an airy tone, "Forget the Slytherin members and their fight against underage drinking and jump into where our Golden Boy should live. I sense a biased side to our Headmaster." Draco's tone was light so Harry figured the blonde was still in a good mood and was joking around. He rather liked this side of Draco and it as one of the reasons he wanted to become his friend.  
  
"Yeah." Randolph said, joining in with a smile on his face. "They stick us in the cold dungeons while the Gryffindors get a warm tower with a view."  
  
"And how would you know about this view, Mr. Enoch?" McGonagall asked with an amused look.  
  
His eyes shifted nervously before he answered. "So, Harry, where are you going to live again?"  
  
"Wherever someone volunteers to take me."  
  
"Stay at our flat." Randolph said after a moments thought. "You might as well get to know your distant relations better." He looked at all four members on the bed. "Drake, you're welcome too, you know. Well, once we get the papers of guardianship over you."  
  
"I don't know if that's such a good idea." He bit his lip and stared at Harry for a moment.  
  
"Of course it's a good idea, Malfoy. I want to be your friend, you just won't let me." He said with a small smile.  
  
"Then it's settled." Dumbledore said as he stood up and clapped his hands together. At once, both chairs disappeared and both teachers made their way to the door. "When would you like to go? I could prepare a portkey." He trailed off when he noticed Harry's grim expression. "Or perhaps you would like to floo."  
  
The Tri-wizard Champion shook his head. "Its fine, professor. I can handle it." He gave a weak grin that was returned by Dumbledore.  
  
"All right then. Joe, when can Harry be discharged?" He turned towards the doctor who was studying a chart.  
  
"Today, if he'd like. Perhaps in three hours?" Everyone unanimously nodded his or her head. "I'll just get the paperwork and you'll all be ready to go. Do you have everything packed?" He directed the last part to Harry who looked around his head before affirming he had his everything.  
  
"Oh, wait! My pensieve. Do I even get to keep that?" Harry asked, unsure of the procedure for this. "And my owl, she's missing." At that moment, Hedwig flew in the room and landed behind Harry on his bed. "Never mind."  
  
"That is a clever owl." Joe mused as he walked out of the room.  
  
"About your pensieve, Harry, the Aurors will need to look it over for at least a week. They'll owl it back to you." Snape said before he left the room, creating the grand exits that he was famous for.  
  
Harry nodded and scooped up some books that were still lying on the floor. He glanced upwards and noticed his drawing was still on the wall, only half finished. "Oh, no. Can I take this wall with me?" He asked, jokingly.  
  
"Hmm." Andrea said as she stared at the wall. "Jacio!" She pointed her wand and a red light shot out and hit the wall, stretching from corner to corner. The red was then absorbed and a layer of the wall fell to the ground like a piece of paper. Almost like a snaked shedding it's skin, Harry thought as he picked it up and noticed his design was still on it.  
  
"How'd you do that?" Harry asked.  
  
"A shedding spell." She said as she shrugged. "At this hospital, when they want to clean the walls, they just shed the dirty layers. They'll grow right back in an hour."  
  
"Don't want to know why the walls get dirty." Draco muttered as he and Randolph walked out of the room.  
  
"I'm going to go say good-bye to everyone." Harry said as he walked out. Both girls just nodded and were too busy talking about something to notice him completely.  
  
**********  
  
"Well, you did your mission." Allie said as she sat in the vacated seat.  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Why so silent? We got him, and Randolph and I don't plan on letting him go." Allie said stubbornly.  
  
"I know." Her sister paused before she spoke again. "I sort of feel like we're lying to him." She whispered as she sat down on the bed.  
  
Allie frowned and sat up stiffly in the chair. "Why? Nothing we have told him has been a lie."  
  
"But we let him assume things."  
  
"So? You don't ask for your visions, Andrea. You don't get to choose what's being shown."  
  
"Still-how'd you like it if somebody was watching your life like it was a movie?"  
  
Allie moved to sit on the bed before saying, "It's one thing if the person in standing in the queue waiting to purchase a ticket and ridicule it and it's another when your being held against your will, strapped to a chair and your eyes are held open with clothespins."  
  
"Lovely. It's just-I've seen him at the lowest times of his life and the events that cause it months before they happen and I can't do a thing about it. I knew about Wormtail, Cedric and the Figg woman. But I did nothing." She sighed and went to look out the window. "It sucks being fate's pawn."  
  
"Andrea, listen, if you had interfered, the fate of Harry and those other people would have been far worse. You didn't take a wand and A.K. those people, someone else did. And during the tournament, how could you have escaped school? You also couldn't find Harry's house because it is unplottable, and you know you weren't the only one who knew what was going to happen to Wormtail."  
  
She went quiet for a second and they both stared at the window in silence. "Then how did he do it?" Andrea asked at last.  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Voldemort. How did he find Harry?" Allie looked surprised and tried to think of a response. She finally shrugged in defeat.  
  
"No idea. You're the fortune teller here." Her twin cracked a grin at the nickname.  
  
"Whatever. Let's just get ready to go." Allie nodded and they both left, Andrea closing the door behind them.  
  
**********  
  
"So then I block this shot made by this really-Harry!" Oliver stopped in the middle of the story when his ex-seeker came back into the waiting room.  
  
"Hey Oliver. Hi guys." He fidgeted nervously as he felt slightly guilty for making them come out here before leaving with his distant cousins.  
  
"What's up?" Ron asked anxiously.  
  
"Well, I've come to tell you that they're releasing me in a few hours." He was going to add more but everyone came up and gave him a hug, all were overjoyed at the new.  
  
"That's fantastic!" Hermione cried. "What are you going to do now?"  
  
This was the part he had been dreading. "As it turns out, some friends," He said this word uneasily for he was not sure what to call the Snape twins exactly, "have invited me to live with their family for a while."  
  
"Who?" Ron asked as he tried to remember any other friends his best friend was close to. "Not one of the Gryffindors." Ron said while looking towards Harry for confirmation.  
  
"No." He shook his head to emphasize this point.  
  
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Hermione asked timidly.  
  
"Of course, Dumbledore already approved it." This was met with sighs of relief and a few disappointed faces. "Don't worry; I still have a few hours. So what's new with you all?" Two and a half hours passed after he said this statement and by then he was properly informed on what was going on in the Weasley household, the ministry, new books that had just come out, Quidditch scores, Romania's laws on dragon care, pranks, and treasure locations. It was when they were discussing Quidditch that Joe came back in carrying an armful of papers.  
  
"Okay, Harry, just sign these and you're ready to go." Harry dutifully sighed the papers and tried the best to hide the other signature of Severus Snape and Randolph Enoch. "Good, well head back to your room; Dumbledore's waiting with a portkey." He turned and left leaving Harry to wave goodbye quickly and then fall in step with his doctor. "I'm going to miss you, kid." Joe said affectionately as he ruffled Harry's hair.  
  
"Thanks Joe." His patient said with a quirky smile. "I'll miss you too. Maybe not your inconvenient jokes, or your early wake-up calls, or-"  
  
Joe laughed, "Alright, I get it."  
  
"But next time I nearly die, I'll be looking you up."  
  
"I'd say I'd look forward to it, but I'd rather not see you all bloodied up again." At Harry's shaky smile he quickly added, "I mean, it was almost unfeasible trying to get blood out of your hair." They both shared a laugh and were in good humor when they reached his room where all three siblings, Snape, Draco and Dumbledore were.  
  
"Good. You're all here." Dumbledore clapped once happily. "Grab hold and- "  
  
"Kiss your pants good-bye." Draco finished. Harry noted that Draco also had a trunk with him; a sure sign that he wasn't going to be the only houseguest.  
  
"Sadly enough, that has actually happened to me." Allie mused, making the rest snigger softly. "Grab your trunk, boys." They did as she said and placed their hands on the portkey that was in the shape of a broken plate. A few seconds later, Harry felt the familiar tug behind his navel and closed his eyes until the world stopped making him queasy. A second later, he stumbled to his feet and nearly fell on Andrea as she straightened herself up. She gave a small smile to Harry and gestured around the room.  
  
"Welcome home."  
  
*********** 


	15. Exposed

New chapter and I'm sorry to say it but I'm getting really pissed off with it at the moment. Once I deleted the whole thing, thank goodness I had an old document containing it or else I would have cannibalized my computer. Thanks to all my reviewers because you are all making it worth this hassle to post it. I had more notes, but I'm really upset and tired so I'll just try and post this. Keep reading and reviewing and voting in the still active poll!  
  
Exposed:  
  
Home was, as it turned out, a rather large flat which an open living room, kitchen, study and dining room. There were three bedrooms off to the side with the twins sharing one room, Randolph in the middle, and Harry and Draco in the next. Randolph claimed this arrangement was because the girls talked late into the night and he wanted to spare the boys their insomnia; Allie said it was so Randolph could monitor who was going in and out at all hours of the night. Whatever the reason was, the room suited Harry fine.  
  
The siblings did everything to make them both feel comfortable. When they first moved in, the walls of their room had been a boring peach color with boring white sheets on their two single beds and brown armoires in front of each one. The second day they arrived, Randolph took them to pick out paint for their room, a seemingly simple task. Sadly, they were wrong. It took two days for them to agree on one color, many hours of looking over paint samples, and a lot of Draco's whining until Harry grabbed a gallon of paint off the shelf, held it above Draco and threatened to pour it over his head if he didn't shut up that minute. Needless to say, they chose a pale gray within five minutes.  
  
It was a fun day of painting and even the working Randolph took off a day to paint the room with them. He secretly confided in Harry that he wanted to see Draco's frustration when he noticed how difficult it was to get paint out of one's hair. Thinking back to that incident, Harry mused, that was a fun six hours.  
  
Today was the eighth day after they first arrived and Harry was working on his wall-picture that was now a third of the way done. It might have been further along, but Draco, not wanting to upstaged by a painting, often tried to distract Harry by having asinine conversations, not that he was complaining. Speaking of the boy, Draco walked into their room and flopped on his bed that was on the opposite wall from Harry's.  
  
"Harry." He grunted in reply and waited for the rest. "I'm bored, entertain me."  
  
"Entertain yourself." Draco rolled his eyes and flipped over on his stomach.  
  
"No."  
  
"Do your homework."  
  
"Already done." When he failed to offer another suggestion, he began whining again. "Har-"  
  
"What! I have no idea what you should do. Go ask Andrea or Allie."  
  
"Let's go outside." He said suddenly and began pulling at the neck of his sweater he was wearing. Harry chose that moment to look up and his eyes caught an odd mark.  
  
"What's that?"  
  
"What?" Draco said, inspecting his appearance.  
  
"That mark." Harry got up and pulled his roommate's turtleneck aside and gently fingered a pinkish scar that ran from his Adam's apple to his collarbone. He heard Draco inhale sharply and he took his finger away.  
  
"It's nothing." He cast his eyes downward before heading towards the door. "Are we going or not?"  
  
Harry didn't let him escape that easily. He casually crossed over to the door and slammed it, ignoring the blonde's protest. "Why were you in the hospital?"  
  
"It's none of your business." His tone was emotionless, but Harry could sense the tension in Draco's body and the way he seemed to scream 'Back off!'  
  
"Fine, whatever." Harry said flippantly. It would do no good to upset him; if he did, Harry still wouldn't know the answer and have a psychotic roommate out for his blood. Besides, Harry figured, he could always ask Andrea. "Where do you want to go?"  
  
"Out."  
  
He gave a small laugh. "You'll have to be more specific."  
  
"I don't care." Suddenly, the blonde's face lit up. "Oh, I've got a great idea." With that, he grabbed Harry's hand and dragged him out the door without listening to the protests that his hostage cried along the way. They flew out the door of the apartment, waving a quick good-bye to the twins that were working on their homework in the kitchen and stepped out into the practically empty streets of Hell, Michigan. Draco pushed his way insistently through the crowds and only stopped when he noticed that his captive was slowing him down. "Speed up, will you?" He asked impatiently as he flicked a strand of hair out of his eyes.  
  
"Sorry." Harry said breathlessly. "Just stop manhandling me. What are we doing anyways?"  
  
"Being tourists." Draco said angelically. Harry turned a suspicious glare on the other boy who shrugged and pulled them off in another direction. They continued at the brisk pace for ten more minutes until Draco stopped in front of a rocky terrain with several muggles taking pictures in front of them with men dressed up like cartoon like devils.  
  
"You brought me here." Harry stated, giving Draco a look of suspicion. "Why do I have the feeling we're not here to take pictures?"  
  
"Perhaps because we don't have our camera. Come on." They made their way to a particularly large boulder and dove behind it. "Remember how in the hospital I said I was a veela?"  
  
"Yes." Harry answered wearily, not sure where this was going.  
  
"And remember the veelas at the Quidditch World Cup a year ago?" His smirk grew devilish as he watched the fear rise in Harry's eyes.  
  
"Oh, no. Don't tell me you can morph yourself. Please, just humor me." He shook his head in despair and leaned against the rock.  
  
"Sorry. I was given this gift for a reason." He smirked at Harry and prepared to shift.  
  
The other boy mumbled quietly. "I don't think this was the reason." However, he let the part-veela remove his shirt and shift into the demonic looking form. Where his shoulders blades had once been visible, dark leathery wings sprung up and wrapped around his lithe body. Harry blushed as he tried not to look at his roommate, but for some odd reason, his eyes were having trouble following that order. Instead, he tried to focus on his ex-rival's face that's features were becoming more defined as skin was pulled tightly over his elongating appearance. Draco's ears grew to a more pointed form and his arms grew slightly because of the piercing claws that grew where delicate hands once were. Harry also noticed that his legs had changed as well; they had more muscle and had the appearance of a large cat ready to strike. They also had the long claws that began tapping at the ground edgily as he waited to see Harry's reaction.  
  
"So? How do I look?" Harry looked up in shock when he noticed the new voice that had accompanied the change. It was a high piercing noise and the first hearing but when Harry thought about it, it seemed it echoed itself with tones that ranged from the high pitch to a gravelly undertone.  
  
"Different." He said at last as he checked the area making sure no muggle was snooping near-by. "What are you going to do?"  
  
"See that couple?" Harry looked to where he was pointing and noticed two teenagers who were snogging on a rock far away. "I'm going to show them the importance of public decency." Draco said haughtily.  
  
"Says the half-naked veela-boy." Harry muttered as he rolled his eyes.  
  
The veela shot him a snarky grin and Harry noticed that his teeth had also changed, lengthening the incisors into deadly fangs. "See you in a bit." With that, he stalked off towards the couple that remained oblivious.  
  
Harry crept closer until he was stationed behind a rock four feet away and in perfect hearing distance. He watched in amused horror as Draco rose up stealthily from behind the rock and prodded the two harshly with his claws.  
  
"You know, lusting is a sin. I believe this will cost you your souls." He said the last part in a demonic tone that was deep and booming in an almost subtle way so it grabbed no attention. He smirked at Harry as the couple exchanged frightened glances before hopping off the stone and running towards the street yelling, "Demons! Satan wants our souls!" and attracting the attention of the rest of the tourists who flocked towards the entrance in panic. Luckily, Draco had already disappeared and when Harry crept back to the large boulder they started at, he had changed back and was now pulling on his shirt he had discarded. "That was fun."  
  
Harry, who had been watching with wide eyes in panic, burst out laughing and was joined by Draco as he rolled on the ground clutching their stomachs.  
  
"My God." Harry gasped out.  
  
"That's Satan." Draco corrected.  
  
"Did you see them run?" His face turned serious. "That really wasn't nice."  
  
"Yeah, well neither was groping in front of small children. He stood up to leave and pulled Harry up with him. "Let's get home; I'm exhausted." The other boy agreed and they prepared to leave but were stopped when a hand fell on each shoulder. They exchanged worried looks before looking up at a man dressed up like the devil.  
  
"You two boys are in a lot of trouble."  
  
**********  
  
The Weasley household had returned to normal when they left the hospital. Fred and George returned to their room and explosions were heard at all hours of the day and more often then not, they would appear at meals with scorch marks dusting their faces. Percy, Bill and Charlie returned to their jobs but the younger Weasley still stayed at home and so did Oliver while he visited for those few days. Ron spent his hours playing with Ginny and floo-ing over to Hermione's house, which had finally been connected to the system, thanks to Arthur Weasley who also returned to his job. Mrs. Weasley continued with her housework, a bigger job than any of her sons' or husband's. And Ginny was frequently visiting a friendly Hufflepuff who lived in the same town.  
  
It seemed that the summer definitely promoted change, as Molly Weasley found out when she went to gather laundry from her children's rooms. She had just entered Ron's room and adjusted her eyes to the shocking orange of the Canon's posters when she caught sight of her youngest son on the bed with another.  
  
"My gracious! Ron, Hermione! Separate this instant!" She watched with cleverly disguised amusement as they flew apart on the bed and stared up at her with flushed faces. "Ronald Weasley! What have I told you about bringing girls up here? I only agreed before when Harry was here, but now you've gone behind my back. How long have you two been together?" She demanded with her hands on her hips.  
  
"Sorry, mum." He said as his ears grew scarlet, "It's only been three days." Molly huffed and led them outside and towards the kitchen. "Mum? Are you mad?" He asked nervously as they reached the bottom of the stairs.  
  
She sighed and rubbed her eyes tiredly. "No, Ron, I'm not. Just disappointed you would lie to me about this. But from now on, whenever Hermione is here, you will not be allowed in any room with closed doors together. Now, since your father isn't home, I guess I'll have to have Percy give you this talk." She turned towards Hermione and made her sit down on the chair.  
  
"Percy?!" Ron sputtered. "I think I already know what is supposed to be said." He said in embarrassment.  
  
"I don't care. You'll will talk to your brother and I need to have a talk with Hermione here." Ron watched in amusement as his girlfriend buried her head in her arms on the kitchen table. He was reluctant to leave her to such a fate, but he himself would not like to witness the conversation that would take place. "Now go!" She shooed him up the stairs and sat herself at the table.  
  
Ron made his way up the stairs and wondered why this tradition carried on. Every time one of his brothers found a girlfriend, they were given the 'Weasley chat' and were forced to listen to their dad explain the 'natural game of Quidditch.' He remembered when Percy was dating Penelope and his dad found out, via the twins because all siblings kept an eye on each other. He had marched Percy into his room and had the chat. When they came back down, his brother's face had been stained so red he almost believed it to be permanent. Sighing, he figured at least it was Percy and not his father. Although Percy might draw diagrams and make everything all scientific, still it was infinitely less embarrassing. He knocked hesitantly on the door and waited for his brother to open it.  
  
"Come in." He heard the voice say from behind the door. He did so and watched as Percy shuffled several documents in his hand and stuff them in a portfolio.  
  
"Perce, it's your day off." Ron said in amusement and shock.  
  
"I know, Ronald, but I really need to get this organized because I was rather busy these last few days." His face turned slightly red and Ron imagined it was because he was getting upset at the interruption. "What did you need?"  
  
"Um, well, the thing is that Mum caught Hermione and me-" He began hesitantly, wringing his hands in front of him.  
  
"Caught you making out on your bed?" Came the laughing reply. At his shocked face, his brother added, "Don't be so surprised; I am right below you and believe it or not, I'm not as naïve as I seem." He said with a slight smile as he shifted in his chair to look at Ron. "I assume Mum sent you up here for the 'chat'?" At his brother's nod, he gestured towards the immaculately made bed and told him to sit down. A moment after he said that, he choked on the air and made a dash for a picture that was sitting on his bedside table and stuffed it in a drawer.  
  
"What was that?" Ron asked in suspicion.  
  
"Nothing. Besides, we're here to talk about you. First, as I will be doing the brother and the father version of the chat I will tell you something that will help me keep my sanity." He regarded Ron seriously. "Whenever you head to your room, call one of us for a silencing charm." His brother blushed at that. "Two, because no parents will be at school with you and I doubt the twins will hinder you from.certain activities.learn some contraceptive spells."  
  
"But, we're not-" Ron began and Percy held up a hand.  
  
"Not yet, but you never know. Be prepared. Also, before either of you engage in sexual activity, have yourselves checked over by Pomfrey to make sure neither of you carry any diseases. It's rare among wizards, but because her parents are muggles-well it never hurts to make sure." He shared a small smile with Ron. "I suppose you don't need any help understanding the equipment." He laughed when Ron fell back on the bed in mortification. "I didn't think so." He turned back to his work when Ron looked up and stared at his older brother.  
  
"Hey, Perce?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Did you ever.?" He asked hesitantly.  
  
"Not with Penelope, if that's what you're asking." Percy answered back in a detached voice and gripped his quill tighter.  
  
"Oh. But you only dated her in Hogwarts, didn't you? And you're not dating anyone now." Ron said as he watched as Percy grabbed the side of his desk to keep from reacting. "Or are you?"  
  
"Ron, just leave it." He said in a pleading voice.  
  
"No."  
  
*********  
  
"Well, I've never bailed anyone out of the Creatures' Controls and Regulations department." Andrea said with a smirk as the jailor took off both boys binding spells and allowed them to walk out.  
  
"Seriously, what were you thinking?" Allie said as Harry and Draco rubbed their wrists.  
  
"It's his fault. He made me." Harry said, sticking his tongue at Draco.  
  
"Yeah, well it never would have happened if you had entertained me."  
  
"Let's not fight anymore, please." Harry said, rubbing his eyes for they had been in an argument for the past hour that they were locked up.  
  
"Wow, looks like jail made someone somebody's bitch." Allie remarked lightly and skipped out of Harry's reach.  
  
They continued walking until they were met with a guard holding several documents and looking in fright at Draco. "Excuse me, but you're going to have to register him."  
  
"What!" Draco exploded, looking like he was going to shift again. "I'm not some type of animal."  
  
"I'm sorry sir, but you've disturbed the peace by shifting into a magical creature. You can register now or have it put on your criminal record."  
  
Draco stared at him for a moment before tossing his hair out of his eyes in defiance. "I better not have to wear a collar or anything." He then stormed off leaving everyone else to laugh at his misfortune and chase after him.  
  
"I bet Randolph is working today. We could get him to register you." Andrea said as they turned down a corridor.  
  
"That's not the point." Draco said in anger as they stopped in front of a door. "I don't want to be registered at all. If word gets out to anyone, I'll be listed as impure." At Harry's odd look, he sighed and added, "Wizards sometimes find humans mixed with creatures as monsters themselves. I've got enough blood in me to make me legally a human, but some people just don't see me like that. Besides, I don't need a witch hunt going on after me." He opened the door and they stepped inside.  
  
Harry felt his eyes widen as he watched a wizard office. There were owls flying in from all directions and landing on the sturdy brown desks that were all lined up against the windows. Objects levitated and moved around constantly; once, he was almost decapitated by a summoned folder that whizzed past his ear. Animals and creatures of all sorts sat in chairs or containment cells and even cages. He could see why Draco didn't want to be labeled as a creature if being stuck in a cage is where it landed you. Spotting Randolph at his desk in a corner, all four walked over but were beaten by an elderly wizard with two veelas trailing behind him.  
  
"Enoch! Good, you're here. I can't understand a word of what these two are saying."  
  
"What happened to them?" He asked as he waved in greeting towards the two. The twins and Draco and Harry stepped up behind the crowd and waited patiently. Or at least three did. Draco had stepped forward and was now conversing with the veelas quietly in some soft language. For some reason, it surprised Harry to see him speak fluently in their language even though he carried their blood in his veins. Tuning them out, he looked towards Randolph who was listening to the old man explain the case.  
  
"From what I heard the two were arrested by the muggle police for attempted murder. We don't know what to do with them because from the little veela language we understand, they're vehemently denying all of it. Their species usually isn't violent enough to commit a murder for no reason, which is why we're so puzzled." He turned to look at the two women and gaped as he noticed Draco carrying on a humorous conversation, or, Harry thought, it seemed it was amusing seeing as the women giggled cheerfully. Then again, they could all be flirting for that seemed to be more of Draco's style. Harry couldn't remember all the times they had left a woman in a daze after Draco exerted his charm and then walked away with a smile on his face. Slick bastard, Harry thought in amusement as he watched his roommate flash the veelas a smile.  
  
"Drake, what are you doing?" Randolph asked as he glanced around and noticed everyone there. "What are all of you doing? Here."  
  
"Well, it seems that the veelas have all decided to go on a crime spree, seeing how Draco was also arrested for disrupting the peace." Harry said with a grin.  
  
"What did you say?" Draco said, looking up from his conversation. "What about a crime spree?"  
  
"The veelas are accused of attempted murder." The old wizard said, ignoring ministry policy and divulging classified information.  
  
"What happened?" Draco asked firmly.  
  
"From witness reports, they were walking around downtown late last night and stopped to flirt with two men when they lashed out and 'became terrible monsters'. Poor guys were beaten to a pulp before police found the two standing over them wielding knives and then dragged them off. By the time they reached the police station, they had shifted back but were dazed and confused, symptoms not unheard of during transformation."  
  
The blonde nodded before question the veelas who looked startled by the new route their conversation had taken although they answered dutifully. Harry noticed, in much amusement, that they gestured with their hands in an almost random fashion but they too seemed to possess that exquisite grace that Draco and all of his motions had. During the course of the conversation, their faces turned grave and the hand motions slowed down until their hands were simply raised and flowing side to side as if in a dance.  
  
"Why aren't they under restraints?" He whispered to Allie who was watching the fight with awe. Veelas weren't common creatures, Harry supposed, especially in America.  
  
"They are." Andrea whispered back from his other side. "Magical ones, you can't see them." He nodded and watched as they finished their conversation.  
  
"Right." Draco said as he turned away and turned towards the two ministry workers. "They say that that night they spent most of it at a bar seducing the locals. Around their third drink, they felt a little funny and decided to get some air."  
  
"Wait, three drinks? And they were there all night?" Harry said, letting doubt penetrate his voice.  
  
"Veelas aren't heavy drinkers. Anyway, they stepped outside when everything grew hazy and they began to feel disoriented. They must of blacked out or something because they don't remember anything after that, just waking up in their cell." Draco finished.  
  
They all took a moment to reflect on this. The old man spoke up first and drew everyone from his or her thoughts. "It's odd; this isn't the first attack where the veela has no recollection of what has happened. There was a case in Bulgaria, two actually, one in France where the veela hung herself. If it wasn't for these incidents, it would seem like an open-shut case." Draco's face blanched at this but the man carried on without noticing.  
  
"Did you try a blood test for drugs?" Allie suggested.  
  
Andrea's face brightened, "You know, I could just whip up this nifty potion that-"  
  
"No!" Everyone shouted and she scowled.  
  
"Fine, whatever." She tossed her hair over her shoulder, much like Draco had and then stormed towards a fireplace before jumping in and going home.  
  
"What's wrong with her?" Harry asked, looking to where she had once been.  
  
"No idea." Draco muttered.  
  
"She's upset about not being able to make potions in the summer." Allie said in full confidence. "I'll go see if she's okay." Allie left the same way in a purposeful stride.  
  
Randolph stared where his sisters had left moments ago for a minute before turning to speak to the two students. "I don't think everything is as it seems. On most days I don't trust them together but now I'm especially wary." He gave a small laugh before turning back to the old man. "Run a blood intoxication spell and see if it contains any traces of a potion or drug. Anything out of the ordinary." The man nodded and left with the two veelas following in docility. They shared a tiny smile with Draco before disappearing through the doors. "Now, what am I going to do with you boys?" He asked rhetorically with a minute shaking of his head. "Fill these out Draco."  
  
They Slytherin snatched the papers from his hands and went to sit down on the benches on a wall near where they came in. For the first few minutes, Harry watched all the people that circulated the office and then observed the office itself. From where he was, he could see hags being led in and out, vampires being held at bay by crosses and wild goblins occasionally standing up on desks and shrieking until Randolph coxed them down. And it had only been ten minutes! When activity seemed to die down, he watched as the workers began to reassume their seats and scribble furiously on parchment that magically appeared with a small 'pop'. As one could only listen to the incessant popping so many times, he, with a quick look at Draco making sure the blonde was okay, stood up and walked towards some of the containment cells to see the creatures inside. In the first one, he saw quite a few furry-legged creatures that scuttled all over the walls and ceilings, baring their sharp teeth at Harry. On his part, he remained undaunted until he saw a leg of beef tossed in. The creatures swarmed all over it, tearing it apart and scattering flesh on the clear glass in front of him. He was just about to move away when they resumed climbing around, leaving Harry to see the gnawed remains of the bones, picked clean of any meat and sucked clean of the cartilage.  
  
Shivering in disgust, he wondered how they could want to register Draco as a creature like these things were. His roommate would never attack food like that; he always ate with such precision and delicacy, only finishing half of what Harry consumed in a day. Really, he thought to himself, the boy was too skinny for his own good. Or at least he assumed he was as both boys had been rather hesitant to undress in front of each other, even if it was just a shirt. Harry had his own reasons, the mark on his arm being it. Now that he had his memory back of how the mark came about, he began looking up ways to remove it. But after consideration, he figured that if the Dark Mark could be removed, many of Voldemort's followers would have done that after his first downfall. Concealment charms didn't work either, not on magical scars, Marks, or even wizarding tattoos. He once had the notion to just cut off that area of skin and just have a scar, anything was better than having himself branded as Voldemort's lap dog. Clenching his teeth angrily, he walked to another cell and found himself looking at a crying creature sitting in a corner and bawling her eyes out.  
  
From the greenish tone her skin had, Harry rightfully surmised her to be a banshee, like the one Seamus had inadvertently conjured up with the boggart in his third year. He stared at the poor creature and couldn't help but feel pity for a being whose majority of the time was spent crying. Then, sensing his presence, she stopped weeping and looked up at him with bloodshot eyes. She stood up to her full height, which Harry estimated was at least half a meter above his, and smoothed out her black hair that flowed to the floor and drifted around the skintight black dress she wore. Silently, she lifted her hand to reveal long, pointed fingernails that were tinged slightly in red.  
  
"Hello." Harry said quietly, watching in fascination as she crept closer to the glass scene that must have contained a silencing charm. The banshee gave a tearful smile and closed her had that had been facing palm up towards Harry. She looked slightly confused and he smiled hesitantly. "Are you okay?"  
  
She must have heard him because her eyes opened in shock and rebounded from the wall as if magically repelled. Her eyes filled with tears again and she threw herself in the corner, crying again but with less vigor than before.  
  
He didn't know what to do so he turned back and sat next to Draco who was sucking on the end of his quill in thought.  
  
"Hard question?" Harry asked.  
  
Without even looking up, Draco replied, "Not really."  
  
"Then why are you sucking on your quill in contemplation?"  
  
Without missing a beat, he replied, "I'm not contemplating; I'm sucking the ink from this quill in hopes of dying from ink poisoning." At his roommate's silence, he looked up. "I'm joking, the questions are just really strange."  
  
"How so?"  
  
"'Have you ever worn anything revealing your lower half', 'Do you keep sex toys a) near your bed b) in your pocket, or c) in a closet at home,' 'What's your opinion on sheep shagging?'" He glared at Harry while the other boy laughed. "They find out you're a veela and they immediately assume all you have on your mind is sex."  
  
"You're a teenage boy," Harry pointed out, "All you have on your mind is sex."  
  
"Not with sheep or handcuffs or whips or food or things that vibrate-" Draco ranted.  
  
"For someone against this, you seem to know a lot about kinky sex." Harry said as he smirked at the blonde.  
  
"It was a very informative questionnaire." Draco huffed and resumed writing. "Besides, Pansy is not the most 'vanilla' person you'll ever meet."  
  
Harry choked on the air and sat up straighter to stare at Draco. "What? When did you sleep with Pansy?" For some reason, the thought of Draco with her felt like a punch in the gut. The feeling was disturbing so he tried to turn back to the conversation, only to realize that was equally upsetting. He finally decided on thinking of nothing while Draco gave his answer.  
  
"This summer."  
  
"You're fifteen." Harry pointed out, and when Draco failed to understand his point he added, "That's a little young."  
  
"Well, when we're not being known as the evil house, we're the house of sex and orgies." Draco said thoughtfully.  
  
"You're perverted." Harry said bluntly.  
  
"Then I guess I'm right on track with being a veela, aren't I?" He smiled slightly before finishing his registration and walking up to Randolph to turn it in. "All done." He said when he returned and pulled Harry out from his seat. "Let's go back to their flat." They walked to the fireplace and waved goodbye to Randolph before hopping into the fire, shouting the destination and leaving. 


	16. Exit peacefulness, enter chaos

Firstly, sorry for my long lack of update, but as I was telling one of my more persistent reviewers, and may I say that the persistence has been rewarded, I was so busy this week and none of my computers that were hooked to the internet had a disk drive so I got very angry. And now I'm going through a crisis with just about everything in my life, but I can't tell you how happy it made me to get an instant message telling me to get moving with my story in the nicest way possible, so if anybody ever wants to get me to update or just to chat about my story or even to yell about it, feel free to IM me or e-mail me. Thanks a bunch to all my reviewers and readers!  
  
Chapter Twelve (I think):  
  
"Sirius!" Ari shouted from her bed in their hotel room. "Stop your damn pacing! Just sit down or something." She rubbed her temples harshly and glared at the black haired man who sneered back before sitting on his bed that was adjacent to hers. She looked a little regretful when he remained sulky for several minutes and quickly said, "I'm sure Harry's fine. You don't need to worry about him."  
  
"Why shouldn't I? He just up and left with three complete strangers and that Malfoy boy!" He gesticulated wildly and threw himself back on the bed. "And to America of all places!"  
  
"Dumbledore trust the family Harry's with; I'm sure they'll be equipped to look after him." The Auror reasoned.  
  
"Sorry. I just can't stop thinking about the danger he's putting himself in."  
  
"I can help you forget." She leered moving from her bed to his and ignoring the end part of his statement. At this, Sirius perked up a bit and sat up in his bed.  
  
"Really? Well how about-" He was cut off as the door flew open and Remus stood there clutching a bag close to his chest.  
  
"Siri, Ari, can I-" He looked around and saw both sitting on the same bed. "Am I interrupting something?" He asked hesitantly.  
  
"No." Sirius said as he raked a hand through his hair. "What'd you need?"  
  
He toed the carpet silently, looking awkward. "I kind of needed a place to stay."  
  
"What happened to your house?" Ari asked, moving back to her bed.  
  
Remus blushed. "Well, some of the villagers found out I was a werewolf and they sort of...torched it." At their outraged faces he quickly added, "Don't worry, the house is fine and so is all my stuff but I'd rather them not torch me when I'm asleep."  
  
"Of course you can stay with us." Ari said as she rose from the bed and grabbed his bag and set it on the table. "I could share with Sirius, or you could if you two don't mind."  
  
"Actually, I was just going to kip on the couch." Remus shrugged as he pulled out a blanket and laid it on the thin mattress from the foldout bed.  
  
"But it's so hard!" Ari said in shock, trying to usher him to one of the beds.  
  
"I've slept in a lot worse places." The werewolf said with a wry grin. "I'll be fine, don't worry and I'll probably leave soon anyway."  
  
"Stay as long as you'd like, Moony." Sirius said with a grin.  
  
************  
  
"Come on Perce!" Ron pleaded for the fifth time from his position on the bed. His older brother still hadn't told him whom he was dating yet and it irked him to no end. Ron just couldn't understand the reason for secrecy, something Percy wasn't sure to be thankful for. After all, he had wanted to reveal his secret to his family and it wasn't like he was ashamed of it.  
  
"No, Ron. Why does it matter anyway?" He asked tiredly.  
  
"Because you're my brother." Ron said as if it explained everything. "You know who I'm dating and I want to know who you're dating."  
  
He looked at his brother for a moment, internally debating whether or not to trust him with this. His girlfriend and best friend both knew of his relationship with Oliver so it seemed rather wrong to leave him out of this, especially since he was the closest to Percy of the three. Silently, he made his decision.  
  
"Okay, Ron. I'll tell you." His brother's face lit up at the thought of being trusted with this well kept secret. "But you have to promise not to tell anyone else, except for Harry and Hermione because they already know.  
  
"Why do they know and I don't?" Ron asked after his face fell from that last bit of news.  
  
"They caught us together; Harry in his third year and Hermione over a week ago." This seemed to calm Ron for he patiently waited for Percy to continue although he could tell the younger man was bouncing in his seat in anticipation. "Okay." Here, he took a deep breath and said his words quickly and almost unintelligibly. "I'mgayanddatingOliverWood." He waited for Ron's reaction and held his breath.  
  
It took the younger boy a moment to figure out what he was saying and when he translated the Percy jumble he just sat on the bed in shock.  
  
"Well, what do you think?" His older brother asked nervously in fear of rejection from his family.  
  
"Y-Your dating Oliver Wood?" At his nod, Ron took a deep breath and began ranting. "The Quidditch player? Fred and George and Harry's team captain? The man who doesn't believe in life before Quidditch?" Percy nodded quietly. "Well. Nice choice, Perce!" He slapped his brother on the back and Percy just stared at him in surprise. "What? I like Oliver. He's nice, fun, easy going, loves Quidditch, some may call him handsome." Ron said ticking the points of his fingers. Percy blushed at the last one.  
  
He was tempted to say 'Heart stopping-ly sexy,' but Percy held his tongue and simply thanked his brother for being so understanding.  
  
"Oh, it's nothing Perce. Hey! Do you think he knows the Canons?" Ron asked hopefully causing Percy to laugh; this was the way he expected the conversation to be going.  
  
"I don't think so. Sorry Ron."  
  
"Drat. Oh well. You know," Ron said as he sat back on the bed, "You really should tell mom and dad. It's not like anyone in this family will care. Besides, they still think you're going to get back with Penelope."  
  
"That's not going to happen anytime soon." Percy said with a laugh and Ron could finally understand what the fun loving Quidditch player saw in his brother. This must be the side of Percy that they shared when they're together, not the uptight one that worked at he ministry and slaved over reports on cauldron thickness. Sadly, Ron wished he had helped his brother turn out like this instead of having someone else bring this Weasley out of his shell, not that Ron was upset that it was Oliver who did this, for the redheaded boy respected his brother's lover very much.  
  
"Right. Well, I better go save my girlfriend from mum." He prepared to go out the door but stopped in the doorframe and looked back at Percy who had resumed working. "You know, if you ever need to talk about him, I'm just a room or owl away." Percy looked up and smiled at Ron.  
  
"Thanks Ron." The younger boy nodded his head and left before closing the door behind him. Ron had made it to the stairs before a thought hit him and he rushed back to Percy's room, startling the man when the door swung open and then closed when Ron took his position on the bed again. "What's wrong?"  
  
"I just remembered what we were talking about." Percy waited for him to continue but nothing could have prepared him for what his brother was about to say. "You slept with Oliver Wood!" Percy choked and looked up at Ron who looked triumphant with his discovery. "I knew it! You said you never did anything with Penny and the only other person you've been with is Oliver! You had sex with the Quidditch captain!" He was ignorant to how Percy's face grew more and more red until it looked like his whole face was on fire. "Do you know how many girls would kill to be in your spot?" Ron laughed as he walked out of the room.  
  
"They won't have the chance!" Percy yelled out the door and smiled as he heard Ron's laughter all the way downstairs.  
  
*******  
  
When Harry arrived at the flat, he noticed the girls had abandoned their work stations in the kitchen and Draco, who had gone first, was no where to be seen. He walked to the Potions lab that was behind another door opposite of their rooms. The door was open and he saw Draco reading a brief note before sticking it in a burner.  
  
"What was that?" His voice caused the blonde to jump and nearly burn his hand.  
  
"Don't sneak up on people like that, Potter!" He inspected his finger for a moment before answering. "And that was a note from the girls. They're in California."  
  
"California?" Harry said in shock. "What are they doing there?" He couldn't believe Randolph would just let his siblings up and leave.  
  
"Visiting some Wiccan coven." At his roommate's shocked face, he laughed quietly before adding, "Don't look so surprised. Allie and Andrea do this all the time."  
  
"What about Randolph? Or Sn-Severus?" Harry still had a hard time remembering to call his professor by his first name when out of school. Snape had come by to visit for a few hours on the forth day he and Draco arrived and gave Harry the permission to call him Severus but it was a large adjustment from normal protocol.  
  
"Randolph cares but its not like he could do anything to stop it, even if he wanted to. Both girls are pretty responsible when they need to be. As for Sev', well, he may be their father by birth but to the whole family, Severus included, they treat each other as confidants and almost friends."  
  
"Friends?" Harry sputtered nonplussed. "He's their father."  
  
Draco shook his head at the other boy's ignorance to the world. "We don't remember what it was like during Voldemort's reign, but times were different. Here's Sev', recently a widower with two twin girls about two and a half years old and a young stepson who's away at school most of the time. It wasn't easy for him, mainly because he was a traitor in many dangerous circles and those two were huge liabilities."  
  
"What'd he do?" Harry asked as they made their way to the living room and plopped down on the couch.  
  
"Left them with the Diviner's Council. Later, when Randolph graduated, he took the girls with him to America where he found a job and, with help of Sev's funds, he manages to take care of them all." Draco finished with a shrug. "Not many people know of them because not only are they risky to Sev's fight to stay on the good side but they could also cripple the light side of the war. Voldemort could manipulate their powers, force them to reveal any secrets they may find out via Andrea's visions and destroy people who should have been saved."  
  
"Wow." Harry said, as he leaned back into the sofa and processed everything. "I thought my home life was complicated." Draco chuckled mirthlessly and Harry looked up at him. "Where do you stand on the war, Draco?" Harry asked timidly.  
  
The Slytherin snapped his eyes towards Harry's face and stared at him coldly. "Why's it your business? Besides, you shouldn't have to ask; if I wanted you dead, you'd be dead." Draco hissed as he got up to leave but was pulled down by Harry, practically on top of the other boy.  
  
"No, don't go." Harry said quietly, inches away from Draco's face as the blonde struggled to remove his legs from the awkward position on Harry's lap. He finally gave up and looked up at his ex-archrival. Their eyes locked for a moment and Harry, who was enthralled with the shifting color of Draco's eyes, loosened his hand allowing Draco to slide back to his section of the couch.  
  
"I'm not going anywhere." Draco said quietly.  
  
"I'm sorry. Recently you've never done anything to make me believe you were in his league."  
  
"In the past I have." Draco conceded. When Harry was about to counter the argument again, he held up a hand to stop him. "Don't. Let's just forget it." Harry nodded and they sat there for a moment in an uncomfortable silence, each trying to come up with something to say that would break the ice. Luckily, a falcon flew in and perched itself on Draco's arm, digging its talons into his arm but not enough to break the skin.  
  
Draco unraveled the letter and skimmed it before folding it up and passing it to Harry who read it and understood that Randolph wasn't going to be home the rest of the night.  
  
"What do you think he's doing?" He asked Draco who was stroking the bird's feathers gently and murmuring to it softly.  
  
"No idea." He said finally when the falcon flew to its perch in the back of the room. "Possibly a date; I know he's seeing someone."  
  
"So, what do you want to do?" Draco shrugged and Harry sighed. "How about a movie?"  
  
"Sure."  
  
When Harry first arrived he was glad to find that the siblings preferred muggle entertainment to wizard. They had a whole entertainment system that baffled Draco and would have had Mr. Weasley salivating at the sight of all those plugs. Oddly enough, the blonde boy actually seemed to enjoy films although he claimed the idea was stolen from wizard pictures. Harry browsed along their wall of DVDs and sorted through a few of them before he found a black case with no cover that was only labeled as 'LoTR Alt. Uni.' Curiously, he held it up to Draco and asked if he knew what the title meant. To his puzzlement, the boy burst out laughing and grabbed the disk to put into the machine. That done, he dragged Harry back to the couch and fiddled around with the remote until the opening started. Harry had already seen this movie and had no real desire to see it again; already he was bored by the voice over from the Lady of the Woods.  
  
"Why are we watching this?" Harry whispered as he saw Draco fast forward through some parts.  
  
"Well, Harry," He said with a wide grin as he paused the film, "This isn't your average version of Lord of the Rings."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"You see, when Andrea and Sev' get together and start brewing, lots of interesting things can happen. Once, about a year ago, they developed the Sciftan Potion that basically allows the drinker to pass into any dimension or realm in the time it takes to apparate. As it turns out, it's possible to shift from a three dimensional world to a two dimensional world." He trailed off and waited for Harry to fill in the pieces.  
  
"Oh! So you mean they entered the film and-"  
  
"Altered it. One event can change the whole future of this film and from what they've told me, this one has been played around with fairly often."  
  
Harry smiled and grabbed the remote from his hand to press play and they sat back and began watching the film.  
  
***********  
  
It was thirty minutes in when Harry noticed the first large change. Arwen seemed to have already sailed over to the Grey Havens, thanks to the fast talking twins who needed the Elven princess to leave for their ploy to take place. It was another twenty minutes when Harry watched as Allie pulled Aragorn to the side and Andrea took care of Legolas. But the largest alteration was the lustful glances the two in the company kept giving each other when the other wasn't looking.  
  
With wide eyes, Harry watched as the elf and man began snogging on screen. He turned to Draco to see how it was affecting him but the blonde seemed as composed as ever, not even flinching when a tunic flew across the screen followed by another and a pair of breeches.  
  
Finally, Harry couldn't stand it and hissed over to Draco. "Draco!"  
  
"What?" He snapped, obviously upset that he was missing the movie.  
  
"This has turned into a porn flick!" He turned back towards the screen as Draco did then quickly turned away with a blush on his face.  
  
"So it has Harry, so it has." He said as if his roommate had just remarked that it had rained last night.  
  
"Don't you care?" At the Slytherin's negative response, he sighed. The Slytherin house really was the house of sex and orgies. "We can't do this!"  
  
"What? Watch this? Who will know? Besides everyone else in this house has already." He turned back but continued talking. "You don't have to watch if you don't want to. But you might never get the chance to see elves and men get it on again." Harry rolled his eyes and watched the movie in mortification.  
  
'I can't believe I'm watching gay Lord of the Rings porn with Draco Malfoy.' Luckily the scene had passed and everyone was once again fully clothed, much to Harry's thanks. However, he knew better than to think that it would only happen once because once they entered Moria, the two snuck off again with the camera following them. Only this time, Harry didn't look away completely although the blush on his face still remained.  
  
"Huh." Draco said as he cocked his head to the side. "Did not know that legs could bend like that." Harry moved his head towards the side and shook his head.  
  
"No, that's an arm." As if one, they turned their heads the opposite way. "Never mind."  
  
"Ah Potter, so innocent." Harry rolled his eyes and focused on the movie. Throughout the scene he was watching, he felt his whole body heat up and he squirmed uncomfortably next to Draco, hoping the other boy wouldn't notice. No such luck.  
  
"You know Potter," A voice drawled from the side, "I have no problem if you get all hot and bothered but if you start fondling yourself, well that's the last straw."  
  
"Don't you ever get-you know." Harry gestured downwards and Draco smirked.  
  
"Aroused and attracted? Yes, but I can turn it on and off better than humans can." At Harry's skeptical look, he continued. "What? It's true, the only reason you're not falling all over yourself trying to get into my pants in because I turned off my attraction."  
  
"What about Fleur?" He pointed out. "She had people fawning all over."  
  
"The pretentious glutton? She craved the attention."  
  
"I'd have thought you were the same way." Harry murmured, avoiding a swat from Draco.  
  
"Funny Potter. Just watch the movie." And they did.  
  
********  
  
Harry woke up the next morning when he fell off the couch. He looked up and noticed Draco still asleep and curled up on the couch with the T.V screen blank because no one had shut it off. Picking himself up, he glanced around the room for a moment before he heard the key turning in the lock. The door swung open to reveal Randolph in good spirits and slightly rumpled clothes.  
  
"Good night?" Harry asked with a smirk as he watched the older man blush although he answered calmly.  
  
"Very. And you?"  
  
"Informative." At Harry's wry smile, he noticed the T.V and quickly crossed over to it, grabbing the black box that was sitting on top of the DVD player. Quickly reading the title, Randolph burst out laughing before packing the disk back in and hiding it amongst the other films.  
  
"I'm guessing it was Draco's idea?" At Harry's nod he smiled and shook his head. "The blonde definitely takes his sex drive seriously. But don't let him make all the decisions; if you're uncomfortable just change the film or leave."  
  
"It was fine. Probably not my movie of choice, but it was educational to say the least."  
  
He noticed Harry was looking at where he stuck the film in confusion. "We kind of need to hide this film, so if Sev' ever asks, say you have no idea where it is." Harry laughed and went into his room to take a shower.  
  
"Are the girls still asleep?" Randolph yelled to Harry but was answered by Draco who stretched himself out on the couch, rubbing his eyes tiredly.  
  
"No." He said covering a yawn. "They left to go visit a coven in California. They'll be back in about a week." Randolph shrugged his shoulders before going into the kitchen and beginning to prepare breakfast. "Where were you this morning?" Draco asked as he stumbled into the kitchen and sat in one of the chairs.  
  
He replied curtly. "My girlfriend's."  
  
"Imagine," Draco said in mock surprise, "Leaving children on their own while you get some hot shagging action."  
  
"Says the boy who was watching porn."  
  
"Touché." Randolph finished with the eggs he was making and laid them out in front of Draco while keeping a heating spell on them for Harry who came out of the shower five minutes later with hair still dripping.  
  
"Hey. Where were you last night?" He asked as he got himself some breakfast and Randolph repeated his statement. "Oh. Do we get to meet her?" Draco perked up at this.  
  
"Um..." The older man squirmed uncomfortably in his chair. "She sort of doesn't know I'm a wizard yet."  
  
Draco chuckled while Harry looked on in shock. "Well what does she think you do?"  
  
"She knows I'm a linguist, just not which kind." Both boys burst out laughing at the sheepish remark.  
  
"Can we meet her?" Draco asked. Randolph quickly shook his head no and the blonde began to pout. "Why not?"  
  
"She's not like us, Drake. Her parents belong to country clubs. Her mother sings in the church choir and her father's a physiatrist."  
  
"So?" Harry asked through a mouthful of breakfast.  
  
"She's normal! Once they find out about us they'll probably think we're satanic worshipers who let our children run to bars and get drunk."  
  
"Last part's true." He mumbled while Draco stared at Randolph who was upset from his rant.  
  
"You're not ashamed of all this, are you? I mean, who cares if you have a seer for a sister, you and your other sister are empaths and your father teaches at a school for magic?"  
  
"They might. I know they don't like me already based on their emotions." The older boy said as he picked at the food on his plate.  
  
"Isn't she a little curious about why she's never met your family or seen any coworkers?" Harry asked.  
  
"Yes." Randolph admitted. "She wants my family to meet her parents."  
  
Draco jumped up looking gleeful. "Let's do it today. You can bring us."  
  
"I don't know..."  
  
"Come on," Harry pleaded, "The girls are gone and we've got nothing to do. Besides, we shouldn't be let out of sight because he's a felon." Draco sneered at Harry on the last one.  
  
He finally agreed. "Fine, just let me call Anne and set something up." He left and the two boys stared at each other.  
  
"He's dating an Anne?" Draco said with his nose wrinkled in distaste. "How boring."  
  
"Hey. My name's Harry-that's pretty ordinary."  
  
"Well, I never said I liked your name Potter." He left and headed towards their room probably to take a shower. Harry followed him with the intention to dry his hair a moment later and walked in just in time to see a pale back disappear behind the bathroom door. Grabbing the hairdryer, Harry began drying his hair when he felt a slight hum in his head again. Assuming it was just the hairdryer, he ignored it until he began to hear muffled voices. Quickly, he turned off the hair dryer and laid down on the bed in relaxation before attempting to push his powers away. He learned the technique from Andrea and Allie, although the latter girl used it more often in order to ward off a barrage of emotions. Andrea's visions couldn't be pushed aside but she often used it to calm herself down and review the visions in her head again.  
  
While relaxing, Harry allowed his mind to drift once he noticed the buzz was beginning to become even more muffled.  
  
Ever since he had arrived, his telepathy hadn't been that active; only small phasing amounts slipped through the delicate mental barriers he had. However, the power never broke through far enough and Harry had enough restraint to hold in back until he was by himself so almost no one in the house could tell. Unfortunately, the telepathy once switched on when he was sitting next to Andrea and Allie at the time and Allie, using her empathy, picked up on his fear and tension. This led to the relaxing exercise he was doing now. He didn't know how long he was laying there but soon enough Draco came out in a towel with skin flushed from his shower. Harry sensed him but didn't look up while Draco grabbed his clothes and returned to the bathroom with the hairdryer. When he exited the bathroom for the last time, he pulled up an unwilling Harry and dragged him out the door to Randolph who was sitting on the sofa reading the newspaper.  
  
"Ready to go?" He asked without looking up from his paper.  
  
Draco was about to say yes but noticed Harry's hair and dragged him back into the room telling the older boy that they'd only be a moment.  
  
"You're so cruel to your hair Harry." The Slytherin said as he grabbed a brush and the hairdryer to finish the job. By now, Harry's hair was curling around his shoulders and could be tied up easily, which is what Draco did with a leather hair tie before pushing him out the door and declaring they were ready to go.  
  
Walking down to the front of their building, Harry couldn't help but feel underdressed next to those two. Randolph was wearing black trousers and a white dress shirt, which made him look older and more responsible than he did when he wore his raggedy old jeans with holes on the knees and t-shirts he threw on. Draco, however, never looked raggedy, probably not even if he wore Harry's clothes because everything on the blonde just seemed to work well for him. Now, Draco donned tight black leather pants and a silvery silk shirt that, and although it wasn't fancy and definitely not in-law appropriate, it made Harry's cargo pants and green t-shirt look dowdy.  
  
They walked out the door and it was then that Harry realized how they were actually going to meet Anne's parents, for Anne was leaning against her car with a smile on her face. She greeted Randolph with a kiss before saying hi to both boys.  
  
Looking her over Harry thought of one word to describe her: gorgeous. While she wasn't someone he would go for, he could definitely see the attraction. She was oriental with a flawless olive complexion and sleek black hair that fell down to about her mid back. Her eyes were a delicate almond shape that housed cheerful brown eyes. Anne must have been about five inches shorter than her boyfriend but they seemed to fit together and make an attractive couple.  
  
They all jumped into the car with Randolph in the front and the two boys in the back.  
  
"Hi you guys." She said brightly as she surveyed them through the rear view mirror. Harry could barely hide his surprise when he noticed that she was driving on the wrong side of the street and sitting on the wrong side of the car. Draco saw this and laughed.  
  
"Relax." He whispered in Harry's ear, causing the black hair boy to shiver slightly. "Driving in America is different from in England." Harry nodded. He was still surprised at his reaction to having the boy that close.  
  
"So what are your names?" Anne asked.  
  
"Harry."  
  
"Draco."  
  
"Draco, the dragon." She said with a small smile that was returned by Draco. "I suppose your family liked astronomy."  
  
"Yes." He agreed. "We often used the moon to remind us of our blood letting rituals." Anne laughed while Randolph looked slightly nervous. "But very good, picking up the meaning. Do you work in astronomy?"  
  
"Yes." She said as she drove. "That's actually how Randolph and I met. Though I assume you already know the story."  
  
"I don't." Harry said, speaking up.  
  
"Well I was at a convention." Anne explained. "And then I saw Randolph who was helping his sisters with some research about something." She turned to her boyfriend and began to talk to him. "What were you researching again?"  
  
"Planetary movements and how people believed you could use them to tell the future." He replied unsurely.  
  
"Right. A bunch of nonsense if you ask me."  
  
"Definitely." Draco said smoothly. "Almost like the belief of magic." Harry stifled a laugh and Anne showed her agreement.  
  
"Yes. Anyway, Randolph and I were seated together at the banquet that night and we hit it off. That was almost a year ago and here we are now."  
  
"Amazing. Odd how we haven't met sooner." Draco said almost flirtatiously.  
  
"I suppose us being in England has something to do with it." Harry said. They continued conversing for several more minutes before they pulled into a parking lot and got out. Harry looked up to see a large building, though not in height, with well-dressed people strolling in and out. He saw some of them carrying around golf bags and head into the beautifully landscaped courses. They entered and walked until they reached a lounge where Anne simply said their last name and was shown to a table where two other people were sitting.  
  
Anne's parents looked kind enough in Harry's eyes. She got most of her looks from her mother, who was also oriental although her father was a dark haired man with hazel eyes and a tanner complexion. Both parents had small wisps of gray hair near their temples and had small wrinkles around the corner of their mouths and eyes.  
  
"Hello Mother, Father." Anne said giving each one a hug.  
  
"Anne." Her mother said calmly as she gestured for them to sit down.  
  
"Hello Mr. and Mrs. Van Dros."  
  
"Randolph. We meet at last." Her father said and Harry noticed Randolph looking uncomfortable.  
  
"And so do we, Mrs. Van Dros." Draco said charmingly as he took her hand and kissed the back of it. Harry rolled his eyes and then realized that Draco must have been using his charm because she began giggling like a schoolgirl. When Draco sat down, Harry leaned over towards him.  
  
"You're probably going to get your arse kicked by her husband." He whispered watching as Mr. Van Dros glared at him.  
  
"Strange enough, you're not the first person to tell me that." He said innocently as he winked at Randolph who shook his head at his cousin's antics.  
  
"Please, call us Charles and Joy." 'Joy' said sweetly, obviously still under Draco's thrall. "It's such a pleasure to have this get together."  
  
"It is, isn't it?" A voice said from the side and he looked to see Allie and Andrea standing to the side, both dressed in long flowing skirts and wearing dark pendants around their necks.  
  
"What are you two doing here?" Randolph asked as they grabbed two chairs and sat on the other side of Harry and next to Charles.  
  
"Meeting your girlfriend." Andrea said as she reached a hand over the table. "Hi, I'm Andrea and this is my sister Allie."  
  
"Hello." Allie said cheerfully as she fingered the straw in her drink that she had brought over.  
  
"Hi." Anne said kindly. "How are you all related?" She said interestedly. All five looked at each other and exchanged looks. The siblings had a muted debate while Harry and Draco just shrugged and waited for things to play out. Anne and her family were looking rather confused at the exchanges.  
  
"These two are my half sisters. Draco is our adopted cousin." Draco nodded his head to show which of the boys he was. "And Harry is my stepfather's second cousin." Harry waved slightly.  
  
"How nice." Charles said gruffly and Allie and Randolph both felt feelings of dislike and distrust wash over them. Harry noticed the tension that grew in the two and quickly figured out what was going on. "Randolph, what was it you said you did?"  
  
"I'm a linguist, sir." He said promptly.  
  
"Fascinating." Joy said as she leaned forward on the table. "What languages?"  
  
Randolph's eyes widened in fear at this. "Just a few dead and tribal languages."  
  
"Do you think maybe you could charm her father? Things are getting kind of tense." Harry said to Draco who winked at Harry before leaning over the table.  
  
"So Charles and Joy, what do you two do?" He practically purred to them. Anne raised an eyebrow at the sight of a fifteen-year-old kid flirting with her parents. The other eyebrow was raised when said parents began to blush and giggle from receiving the veela's attention.  
  
"Nice." Andrea commented, earning a glare from Randolph and a laugh from Harry and her twin.  
  
"Randolph, could I talk to you for a moment?" Anne said, standing up stiffly.  
  
"Sure." The four teenagers exchanged looks. When the two left, they sent Draco after them because he would be hard to hear and track if he was using his elven grace. Creeping around the corner that led to the entrance of the lounge they were in, Draco saw Anne speak fast and furiously to his cousin who was looking impassive.  
  
"What is going on here, Randolph? I take you to meet my parents and you bring two boys you aren't even related to. One of them is little more than a prostitute!" She cried. Draco glared harshly and forced himself from transforming into his veela half. "And then your two sisters show up looking like a couple of hippie children and then that blonde managed to seduce my parents! I don't understand your family." She crossed his arms and Randolph spoke quietly in a dangerous voice.  
  
"First, don't insult my family; Draco is not a whore and both boys are considered family to me whether they possess my blood or not. As for Allie and Andrea, they mean more to me than anyone and I wouldn't care if they showed up naked and began dancing on top of the table before giving your parents lap dances." Draco smiled at this.  
  
Anne looked grieved for a minute. "You're right, I'm sorry. I just wanted everything to be perfect and already daddy doesn't like you because of your family."  
  
Randolph hugged her and then gave a dry chuckle. "Glad he hasn't met Sev'." A 'pop' sounded nearby and he looked up to see Sev' standing there in black trousers and a black silk shirt. "Never mind." Anne looked up and into the strict face of Snape. She gasped in fear as he regarded her sternly. "What's up, Sev?"  
  
"Potter's been found." He said as he began to stroll back in. "Get him out of here." This was all Draco could take before he stepped out into the hallway.  
  
"What's going on?"  
  
***********  
  
At the table, Allie fiddled nervously.  
  
"What's going on?" Harry asked causing both girls to look up. Allie closed her eyes in concentration and began rubbing her temples. At Charles and Joy's odd looks, Harry quickly spoke up. "Headache." They seemed to accept this for they turned back towards the door.  
  
"I sense anger, distrust, frustration and pain." She looked up again and silently conversed with her twin. Harry sighed; he hated when this happened because he felt left out.  
  
Suddenly Andrea spoke up. "Something's wrong." She whispered. 


	17. Visitation

New chapter even though I got so few reviews for the last one. I hope you enjoy it and I'm moving much further along than I thought. I looked down at the page number and saw I was in over 100.  
  
Suddenly Andrea spoke up. "Something's wrong." She whispered.  
  
"What?" Harry asked.  
  
"I don't know." She and Allie both closed their eyes in concentration. "It's chaos."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Chaos." Allie answered. "Of magic. Something strange is going on with our powers."  
  
"Like what?"  
  
"My powers are stronger." Andrea whispered, rubbing her head gently, most likely she was receiving visions every few seconds.  
  
"So are mine." Allie said and they turned towards Harry ready to ask about his. But the Gryffindor was now leaning his head back against his chair as his he arched up in pain, clutching his hands over his head. "What is it?"  
  
"There's just so much noise." Harry whispered pitifully. "I can't block it; it hurts." Allie made to pick him up but was nearly knocked over when she felt emotions being enhanced.  
  
"Whoa." She steadied herself and grabbed Harry by the arm. "Andrea, come-" She stopped when she noticed her sister rolling on the ground clutching her head in her hands. Ignoring the shocked looks from other people in the lounge, Allie let Harry go and tried to reach her sister by going into her mind by way of her emotions. Unlike other times, her mind had been magically sealed and now she was now spurting out deaths of people so fast that Allie hadn't time to register them all. Harry was also on the floor like Andrea was. He had clearly been pulled into her sister's mind when she could not. Rising, she tried to get Draco and Randolph but was stopped when she saw the three and her father walking back towards the table. Draco's face was under Anne's coat but she could see by the way his hands were growing that he couldn't keep his appearance together.  
  
"What's going on?" Anne asked fearfully as the lights began to flicker due to Severus and Randolph losing control over their powers.  
  
"Relax Anne." Randolph said as he walked towards Andrea who had now risen to her knees with her mouth open and her eyes reflecting nothing. "Oh, God. She's preparing a prophecy." He whispered as he saw the look on her face; the magic had now grown to such a state that she was entering the highest degree of being a seer for not many seers could predict a prophecy.  
  
Severus went over to Harry who had fallen to the floor and was squirming in pain from all the noise that was filling his head. People had come to see what was going on and Severus knew they would never get out of here with a throng of people surrounding them from both sides. It was then that the magic grew so strong that you could feel it in the air. Searching blindly for something to hold onto, Harry grabbed the tablecloth and squeezed slightly. A second after the touch, the whole table burst into flames, as did every single one in the lounge. Panic arose as everyone tried to find the exit and avoid the sprinklers that were putting out the fire.  
  
"Randolph!" Anne yelled as she clutched her face in fear and watched as all of the tables burned heedless of the water being poured on them. Her boyfriend paid her no attention and pulled his sister away from the fire, as did Severus with Harry. Anne's parents were still standing there looking confused and rather angry. They began spurting out questions until Severus couldn't think anymore.  
  
"Draco!" The coat turned towards him and he yelled again. "Charm them or something. Just get them out." The coat nodded and approached the people. Pulling the jacket off his head and tossing it to Anne, he revealed his face that was long and angular like before but with pointed ears decorating the side of his face and wings that were scrunched towards his back. With a sharp talon, he slowly passed it in front of their faces. Anne was screaming in horror and trying to attack what she considered a monster with her coat. Draco, not moving his eyes from her parents, waited until she was close enough to outstretch his wings and knock he across the floor.  
  
He continued his slow hypnosis and began to speak softly. "Look at me. Be in my eyes." They looked at him with empty eyes, too far gone to react. "Be in me." The last traces of free will had vanished and he led them to the door picking up Anne and tossing her over his shoulder with the aid of his veela strength. Leading them to the door, he set down a frightened Anne. "Take them outside." To her parents, he whispered, "Follow her." She practically ran out of the building grabbing her parents' wrists.  
  
Draco returned to the group that was now huddled close together as they tried to hold down a shrieking Andrea who was screaming words that nobody seemed to understand, except Draco. The language she was using was a primitive elf dialect, one he was familiar with thanks to his father who thought it appropriate to have his son learn of their heritage. Eyes widening at what they were saying, he crept closer with his wings in front of him in an attempt to shield him from the smoke that was coming off the fire that still were refusing to be extinguished.  
  
"Draco, you're back." Randolph said in relief. "Is Anne okay?" He choked over the last part as he breathed in the harmful fumes.  
  
"Fine. Let's get out of here. You two, apparate Allie and Harry." Draco said to Severus and Randolph who looked a little unsure but nodded anyway.  
  
"What will you do?" Severus asked as he scooped his daughter into his arms. Draco smirked and shook his wings out. The Potion Master got the idea and although he didn't think highly of it, it was the fastest way to get them all out. "Fine. Just go." Draco nodded and grabbed Andrea before running at a window and doing a quick tuck as he dove out the window. Once he fell clear of the building, he stretched his wings out and with all the speed he could muster, he flew them home. On the way there, Andrea had gone silent and was now staring at him with her glassy eyes. Draco regarded her seriously and she began speaking again to him in that strange language. Hearing them, he quickly translated them and stored them away in his mind for when she fell quiet again, which she did a minute later. He shivered slightly as he pieced everything to together before quickly reciting it in his head.  
  
~The black, they move in gathering pieces, consuming what was pure and tainting it black. Pale light rests when red is gained by red and then black will fall. Should amalgamation choose a path, all will be lost until we are consumed by darkness in black's light while our spirits shall cross to peace if they believe. May our decisions be made with wisdom for the battle begins at the wolf's howl and ends in grim~  
  
To Draco, the whole thing made no sense, but he knew prophecies were puzzled meant to be deciphered. Sorting it out, he shifted Andrea in his arms who had collapsed when she finished talking, leaving Draco alone with his thoughts.  
  
"The black must be Voldemort and the Death Eaters." Draco reasoned out loud. As for what they consumed, well, their name was self-explanatory and that was definitely one of the reasons he refused to bow at Voldemort's feet. Tainting it, or the person for he was sure that 'it' was a person they were corrupting, could be maiming or killing though Draco assumed it was most likely raping some innocent before sacrificing her and slicing her up for dinner. He shuddered in disgust at remembering a banquet at his house. At the time he was not allowed to participate in it, something he was grateful for. The only thing that set his mind at ease concerning his father partaking in these events was that Lucius was a vegetarian as were most elves. He was also.  
  
Yes, the first line was easy, but it was the second that made no sense. How could darkness fall when light just rested? And what was the red? He figured that not everything was as it seemed in this and moved onto the next line. Amalgamation had to do with compounding mercury and another metal or something of the sort or combining races; he was willing to bet on the latter being the correct translation and quite possibly, it could be him. But that would mean he would stay a neutral in the war and that was something he had not planned on. Quickly enough, he had arrived back at their flat with everybody already there and Andrea waking up as he set her down. Severus apparated out to report this to the headmaster while Draco was shifting back to his original form. The other three were cleaning the soot marks off their face from the fire with washcloths that were passed around. He accepted one and waited to see what would happen next.  
  
Draco didn't have to wait long. Randolph had dragged his sister off into another room once he saw how unfazed she looked by the entire situation. He was screaming so loud that the closed door did nothing to hide the argument.  
  
Creeping closer, he listened along with Allie and Harry.  
  
"You knew! Damn it! I can't believe you, I mean, how could you? Are you insane, not to mention incredibly selfish and immature? People could have died and now Anne will never speak to me again!" All three winced as the sound of breaking glass carried across the room.  
  
Andrea's sarcastic voice leaked through now. "I'm so sorry. And yes, I did know. Why do you think I showed up? It certainly wasn't to meet that whore you were dating!"  
  
"Anne's not-"  
  
"Yes she is. And it doesn't matter what I think of her. She could be perfect and I still wouldn't have interfered with anything! So if that makes me mad, then well-"  
  
"I can't believe you." Came Randolph's incredulous voice. "How dare you try and decide what is going on in our lives?"  
  
"Rand-"  
  
"No! You had no right. If Anne wasn't right for me then I could have figured that out for myself."  
  
"You moron! This wasn't about you. Look at the bigger picture. Cassandra did not give me this vision so I could decide the fate of your girlfriend."  
  
"Well next time, whether Cassandra tells you or not, just butt out of my life."  
  
"No, she was a liability. I did what was right!"  
  
"How do you know? What makes you the supreme dictator on all that is right and wrong?"  
  
"I can feel it, all the way to my bones. And if you really want me out of your life, why don't I just get out of your apartment?"  
  
"Well maybe you should."  
  
"Fine!" The door opened and Andrea stormed out and into her room. Draco looked in on Randolph and saw him smash a mirror against the wall. Allie went in to talk to him and gave Draco and Harry meaningful looks. They got the idea and walked to Andrea's room where she already had a full suitcase and was now tossing in small things like hair clips and picture frames. Harry was confused at how she packed so quickly, but Draco knew and spoke to her in a soft voice.  
  
"You knew you were leaving." It wasn't a question and she didn't answer. "You knew about everything: the fire, Anne, that fight." Andrea looked up and gave him a small smile before zipping her suitcase and preparing to leave. "Where are you going to stay?"  
  
She ran her fingers through her hair and hauled her stuff outside while pushing past the two near the door. "With the Diviners Council." At Draco's hesitant look, she smiled. "Don't worry; I'll be fine." Stepping up to the fireplace, she threw some powder in before preparing to step in. "Take good care of them while I'm gone. I'll not be back all summer." She gave them each a hug and whispered something in Draco's ear. "When you figure out that prophecy, let me know." She winked before moving on to Harry. "Harry," She whispered in his ear, "The fire wasn't wandless magic." At his confused look, she added. "Welcome to your second power." Harry looked shocked and Andrea smiled before stepping back into the fire, clutching her suitcase to her. "Divine Right!" She yelled and was gone.  
  
**********  
  
Hermione was not having a good day. First was the talk with Mrs. Weasley, which made her more than a little hesitant to even touch someone from her family, had made her want to floo home. Of course, two hours after she got home, an owl flew in, alerting her parents of the situation with Ron. This led to another chat with her mother and plans to meet with his family, his whole family, over dinner. In three days.  
  
Hedwig was sitting on her bed after the conversation with her mother and Hermione eagerly retrieved the note. Ever since Harry left, their correspondence had gone down, but that was fine because his letters often expressed that he was very busy with a new friend. She was glad he had met knew people but still felt slightly jealous at her best friend meeting someone that might take hers or Ron's place; a silly thing to envy. Harry was always a dedicated friend and from what she knew from Ron, when they first met Malfoy, Harry had taken sides with Ron who was his first friend instead of the rich aristocrat.  
  
Now, though, as she was reading the letter, she couldn't help but feel disappointed. Harry seemed unusually distant lately for his letters were brief and almost impersonal. She would have thought it fine after what she had seen in the pensieve that he would be a little closeted but here in writing it appeared that he was having fun.  
  
She sighed and wrote a reply with a request to join her and Ron's family for dinner. It wasn't fair to leave him out of their relationship and he was probably the only one in their close-knit circle of friends and family that did not know. She hoped it wouldn't be that much of a surprise.  
  
Opening her desk drawer, she found her memory box and added the letter to the growing collection; no matter how small or unimportant it was, she would never throw these things away. Truth be told, she was a packrat of the worst sort. Mumbling to herself about her unfavorable habits, she picked up some clothes that were lying on her floor and threw them in the hamper. Giggling slightly, she imagined what her fellow Gryffindors would think if they found out what a mess her room was. It would definitely be a blow to the perfect erudite image she created.  
  
With her arms full of clothes once again, she made a second trip to the hamper and when she got back, she noticed a book that was unearthed from under the clothes. Turning it over, she noticed it was the one she bought from Diagon Alley with Percy, Oliver and those strange siblings.  
  
Thinking of the brother and sister reminded her why she had bought the book in the first place. Deciding she had time to kill, she cleared off a space on her bed and began reading; she was glad that she had retained a good memory so she could recall the wand motions that Allie used.  
  
That was a day ago and now she was downstairs sitting in an armchair and reading while her parents glanced at the moving pictures. So far, nothing had matched the wand style; then again, she had only reached the Howe family.  
  
Her reply from Harry hadn't come yet and that was expected as his owl had only left a day ago. Glancing out the window, she closed her book and went outside to wait for a bit.  
  
**********  
  
"I can't believe she left." Allie said as she rolled over, resting her head on Harry's knees that were lying across his bed.  
  
"I know." Draco replied as he tossed a miniature quaffle up before catching it. He looked over at Harry who was still working diligently on his wall mural and was now much further along, driven by some unseen force. "It kinds of feels like they got divorced and we're the kids." Draco said with a laugh and even Harry snorted in amusement without looking up from his paper.  
  
"Yeah, only we can't actually go and live with her." Allie pointed out as she flipped a page in a book she was reading.  
  
"Why not?" Harry asked with a furrowed brow as he tried to find Draco's hair color in the hundred of paints he had so he could color the boy's miniature portrait on the mural. "Geez, Draco, why couldn't you have just been a brunette?" He asked in frustration.  
  
"Because blondes have more fun." He quipped.  
  
"Not as much as black haired people." Allie said and Harry nodded his head in agreement. "Anyway, we can't visit my sister 'cause we're not diviners. They're very strict about that sort of things; they've got all these enchantments making the council impossible to find without their type of gift. 'Sides, they don't take to magic folk like wizards and witches so it'd be almost unfeasible trying to make them grant you permission."  
  
"Hey, when's Sev' getting back?" Draco said, abruptly changing the subject.  
  
She looked at her watch for a moment before responding. "About ten minutes."  
  
"Good. I want to find out why our powers were out of whack." Harry said and then cried with glee when he noticed a color that suited his roommate's hair. "I mean, it's been a day." He continued with his coloring and they all sat in silence for a moment. "How's Randolph? I haven't seen him much recently.  
  
Draco made a so-so gesture. "Not too bad. He's still angry with Andrea plus he had to break up with his girlfriend and then erase her and her parents' memories of the events yesterday."  
  
"Why? She wouldn't have told, would she?"  
  
"Turns out her family were witch hunters." Allie commented. "Runs in their blood, I suppose. Besides, she didn't take the whole thing that well."  
  
"That wasn't the best way to find out." Draco pointed out and dropped the ball to the ground.  
  
"True, but they would have hunted us down and probably tried to get us arrested for arson." Allie commented.  
  
Harry paused with his art supplies and thought for a moment. "Do you think that's what she saw? That could be why she didn't want the two dating." He was met with two shrugs before he turned back to his work. A moment later, he heard the small 'pop' from his second cousin's arrival and quickly threw down his stuff, allowing Allie to get off him, before running to greet him.  
  
"Hey Sev'." Harry said as he sat on the couch next to Draco who had arrived first. Allie came out of the room and sat on the arm of her father's chair and gave him a warm greeting.  
  
"Where's Randolph?" The potion master asked as he glanced around the room.  
  
"In his room." Allie replied as she stood up. "I'll go get him." She disappeared behind his door and reappeared a moment later tugging her brother to the couch and reassuming her perch on the chair Sev' was in. "So why'd our powers get all wacky?"  
  
"From what I understand-" He began but was interrupted by his stepson.  
  
"You mean what Andrea told you." He said bitterly, clearly still upset with his sister.  
  
"That too." Snape admitted. "Voldemort is gathering forces, non human forces. Demons, monsters, dark creatures and such."  
  
"So was that what was attacking us?" Harry asked.  
  
Snape gave a wry smile. "Yes. It was a Chaos Demon actually. Decided to do what it does best-"  
  
"Cause chaos?" Draco asked sarcastically.  
  
"Five points to Slytherin." He said to Draco who scowled at the hidden taunting. "It decided the best way to hurt you all was to mess with your powers. Luckily it didn't have time to finish its job."  
  
Harry spoke up again. "What would have happened if it did?"  
  
"Andrea and yourself quite possibly might have been driven mad from the noise and her visions. I believe you witnessed a few." At his nod, Severus continued. "Draco, you might have permanently stuck in that form and reverted to your primal instincts and Allie, you and Randolph would have become totally emotionless from the overload of feelings that you came in touch with."  
  
"That does not sound fun." Allie said as her nose wrinkled in distaste.  
  
"Would have been worse than fun." Harry said. "We would have been easy targets for Voldemort and completely useless for the side of light."  
  
Draco nodded and jumped in. "Yeah, I mean, who wants to watch two emotionally stunted people, and two mad teenagers when they can be protecting the ones who might actually be able to help in the war?"  
  
"What about you?" Harry asked when he noticed Draco had not put himself on that list.  
  
"I'd be dead." Harry's mouth formed an 'O' at the answer and he just nodded his head. "It wasn't like they'd want to keep a bloodthirsty veela alive."  
  
Randolph changed the subject after deciding the topic was a little morbid. "How'd they find Harry anyways?" Harry looked up at the mention of his name and swiftly turned his eyes towards Severus.  
  
He took a deep breath and began explaining. "The Headmaster told me that we have protection spells over the whole apartment and within a five mile radius, that's the strongest spell and it makes Harry virtually unplottable. The only way to for it to work is to have a blood relative in the twenty mile radius of either the house or Harry and Voldemort hasn't found a way to break through it yet."  
  
"So when Andrea and Allie left, the spell was inactive so they found him." Draco finished slowly, earning a nod from Snape.  
  
"But Andrea knew what would happen," Allie said incredulously. "I can't believe she left when she knew this was going to happen."  
  
"Are you saying she took you and left the house on purpose so Harry would be found and you all would be attacked by a chaos demon?" Severus asked in disbelief. "I know she doesn't always follow the rules, but that's a little excessive."  
  
"I wouldn't put it passed her." Randolph snorted and was met with surprised faces. "Look, I know she's my sister and all but let's face it: she hasn't been the same since her visions began to increase. And it's no secret why the Council keeps itself hidden." He finished smugly.  
  
"Why?" Harry said, looking up from his lap. "Why are they hidden?"  
  
"They're too ashamed of themselves. During the war, many joined with Voldemort and it wouldn't surprise me if-"  
  
"Enough!" Severus roared as he stood up and nearly knocked Allie off her chair. "I will not tolerate hearing a member of our family being degraded by someone saying they are in a league with Voldemort. Her decisions have always turned out for the best. Let's just have a little faith in her."  
  
Harry looked up and noticed Draco was on his feet too. He assumed the Slytherin was the closest to Andrea out of all the siblings. "You know," He spoke quietly but with an edge to his voice, "We all pretend that we are such victims of fate and visions, but none of us even consider Andrea to be one. She didn't ask for her visions and I can't say I'd always do the right thing when confronted with letting someone die or saving him or her at the expense of others a dozen others. I have more respect for her than anybody in this room." With that, he stormed back to his room. Harry got up and shot everyone an apologetic look before retreating the way Draco left.  
  
Draco was laying face down on his bed pounding his fists into the mattress. "Hey, Draco." The boy didn't look up. "Are you okay?" He made a gesture with his hand implying that Harry should leave. Instead, the black haired boy sat on the edge of his bed.  
  
"Go away." Came the mumbled reply.  
  
"No. I don't think you're okay."  
  
"I'm not." He rolled over and faced Harry. His hair was disarrayed and his eyes were slightly puffy glistening with unshed tears. In Harry's opinion, the boy had never looked more beautiful.  
  
'Whoa.' Harry thought, backtracking. 'Where did that come from?' He ignored it and began concentrating when Draco began talking.  
  
"I just want to get out of here."  
  
"Where would you go?" Draco shrugged and gestured with his hands meaning out.  
  
"I just need some air. Some peace and trees. The elf in me is surfacing." He said with a laugh.  
  
Harry looked confused for a moment. "You want to go camping or something?"  
  
"Or something. I'm thinking of staying in the elfin village in the Forbidden Forest."  
  
His eyes widened at this statement. "We have a village of elves in the forest?" Draco made a vague noise to confirm it. "Huh. Learn something knew everyday. Well, go if you want." He stood up and allowed Draco to get off his bed.  
  
"Know what? I think I will." His face broke out into a smile. "It's been years since I've been. I remember when I went with father-" He broke off and Harry gave a sympathetic smile. Draco had told him about the deaths of his parents on their second night there. He didn't know why; maybe it was because he had gone through the same thing, or that Draco was finally seeing him as a friend. Or maybe he was just there. Whatever it was, it made the boys closer, perhaps not friends but pretty darn close.  
  
"When are you leaving?" He asked quietly. Although he was glad to see his friend so happy, it hurt to have him leave.  
  
"Tomorrow if I get permission from Sev'." Draco said as he ran out the door. Harry sat on his bed and waited for a few minutes before Draco came back in and began packing immediately. "He said I could go!" He cried and Harry rolled his eyes at him stating the obvious.  
  
"For how long?"  
  
Draco shrugged while throwing in a few shirts. "Not too long. Maybe a week. It's just that everything is getting so cluttered around here and I just need some space to breathe." Harry nodded; he too had felt like the walls were closing in on him in this apartment recently. He briefly wished he could go with Draco but supposed the village was only for those carrying elfish blood. "What are you going to do?"  
  
Harry looked up but then sat in thought for a moment. What was he going to do? It wasn't like he had any plans this summer anyways and sad to say, he had mostly relied on Draco to entertain him this past week and a half. "I don't know." He replied quietly. "I hope to finish my mural before school so I could work on that." Draco just nodded his head and went about packing leaving Harry to wonder if he even heard him. He didn't wonder long for at that moment, Hedwig flew through his window with a letter tied to her leg. He hurriedly untied it and left Hedwig to rest a bit.  
  
"Who's it from?"  
  
"Hermione." Harry replied as he read the letter to himself.  
  
"What does she want?" Draco asked when he noticed Harry wasn't reading anymore.  
  
"She invited me to go to dinner with the Weasley family and her family in two days. Looks like I will have something to do with you gone." Harry teased as he folded up the letter.  
  
Draco rolled his eyes. "It's not like I'm your source for entertainment, Potter."  
  
"Yet I seem to be yours. How will you survive without me?" Harry said with mock concern as Draco sealed up his bag.  
  
"Probably socialize with beautiful elves. Heavens, how should I cope?" He stated dramatically as he threw himself backwards on his bed. "So, want to see a movie?" Harry shook his head in amusement at the rapid subject change.  
  
"Sure."  
  
*********  
  
Hermione was beginning to be bored with this book, something she never thought she would say, but there were just so many wizard families that that girl could have belonged to. So instead of reading, Hermione had her book in her lap and was now staring off into space both nervous and excited for the dinner tomorrow. She was glad she was able to see her friends again and the Weasley family held some of her favorite people in the world but she was not looking forward to explaining how Mrs. Weasley found out about her and Ron. She was about to pick up her book again when she heard the 'swoosh' of air from the chimney. Knowing it wasn't Ron, for he was not allowed to visit until after the dinner, she curiously went to the next room to see who was standing in her fireplace.  
  
"Harry!" She squealed as she saw him climb out of her fireplace and dust himself off.  
  
"Hi Hermione." He smiled, a gesture that was returned by her. She helped him dust his robes off that were still covered in ash and soot before he threw his hands up in the air in defeat.  
  
"Ah, to hell with it." He pulled his robes off revealing khaki cargo pants and a tight gray shirt. Hermione stood back and surveyed his outfit. If she had been Ginny or another girl at Hogwarts, she might have been swooning over her best friend who's t-shirt clung to his abdominal muscles from Quidditch and showed off his lean frame. Harry's old NHS glasses had also vanished and were replaced with sleeker silver frames, but this wasn't new for she had seen him wearing these in the hospital and figured they were a gift from Sirius. As it was, Hermione only saw him as a brother and felt nothing more than platonic appreciation for his body.  
  
"What are you doing here so early?" She grunted as they removed his trunk from the fireplace.  
  
He ran a hand through his hair making soot fly up from it and Hermione laugh. Harry grinned sheepishly and she led him to the bathroom where he cleaned himself of the fireplace mess. "Well, Herm, I sort of had a change in plans. Got a little bored at where I was at and decided to come here." He stopped scrubbing at his hair with a washcloth and looked up. "That's okay, isn't it?"  
  
"It's fine." She assured him and together they walked back out into the living room. "Did Dumbledore give you permission to come here for the rest of the summer?"  
  
His eyes widened and he slapped his forehead cursing his forgetfulness. "I can stay for a brief amount of time, but, I hate to be rude and that's how I'm going to sound, but could I have another person stay with me while I'm here?" Hermione nodded slowly, not sure who he would want to bring.  
  
"Sure. We've got the space." And the Grangers did. Both of her parents were well to do dentists and she never failed to have a sufficient amount of living area in her house. "Who'd you have in mind?" Before he answered, another sound of wind came through her chimney and she moved out of the way just in time for Harry to catch the girl that fell out.  
  
"Hey, Allie. You okay?" Harry asked and the girl nodded her head. Now Hermione was really shocked. This was the girl from the hospital and Harry seemed to be on rather friendly terms with her. They weren't dating, were they? She figured she would have to ask later and instead greeted Allie and led her to the bathroom so she could clean up also.  
  
The three went and stored the two trunks in two different rooms that were on either side of her bedroom before they went downstairs and prepared to grab a snack.  
  
"Sorry about everything being sugar free." She said apologetically as they sorted through various health foods.  
  
"It's fine." Harry said dismissively. "The Dursleys never fed me good food anyway and Allie's an ovolactovegetarian anyway. She lives off healthy stuff." Harry said.  
  
"Such big words for such a small brain." Allie said as she grabbed a carrot and began munching on it.  
  
"What does it mean?" Hermione asked interestedly.  
  
Harry looked shocked that she didn't know something but she just ignored him and listened to what Allie was saying. "I'm a vegetarian and I eat eggs and dairy products but nothing that would kill the animal." She said with a shrug. "More complicated than it sounds.  
  
"You must have a lot of discipline." Hermione said with awe for although she wasn't a heavy meat eater, every feast at Hogwarts she proved she was no vegetarian.  
  
"Not really." Harry teased and was almost hit in the head with her flying carrot. "They were supposed to be vegans."  
  
"But we found that we could not live without butter and cheese." Allie said seriously.  
  
"Behold the power of cheese." Harry said seriously and they both began laughing. Hermione kept a smile on her face but inside she was frowning. Just a day ago she had tried to convince herself that they were all still best friends but even Hermione had rarely seen him this open. Maybe they were dating.  
  
She decided to ask but was answered with complete silence and then they burst out laughing again even harder than before. "I'll take that as a no." She muttered to herself as they held on to cabinets to support themselves when their knees became weak from laughing so hard.  
  
They finally calmed down a moment later and almost at that exact time, Hermione heard the door open revealing her parents with their arms full of groceries.  
  
"Hermione, dear. Give us a hand with these." Her mother's muffled voice said and Hermione obediently grabbed a bag from her mother and laid it on the kitchen island where the two guests were now sitting. "Hello." Kate Granger said politely before turning to her daughter and giving her a questioning glance.  
  
"Mum, this is Harry and his friend Allie. Is it okay if they stay here for a while?" She asked pleadingly. Harry glanced over to look at Allie who was focusing intently on a spot on the counter top; more likely was that she was using her powers of empathy and reading what Mrs. Granger was feeling.  
  
"I guess." She said with a sighed and Harry brightened. "We might want to put Allie with you because your cousins are coming in two days. How long do you plan to be here?" Kate asked the two.  
  
"I don't know." Harry answered truthfully. "If you need extra space, though, Allie can stay with me." He said helpfully. It didn't even occur to him that Mrs. Granger might find this strange, for the siblings had all shared couches or beds with each other and the houseguests in perfectly innocent circumstances. Once you had met that family, you were a member for life and there was no awkwardness involved in any of it.  
  
Kate Granger sputtered, as did her husband. "I don't think it's a good idea to have your girlfriend in the same room with you Harry." Greg Granger pointed out noticing their clasped hands, which were actually due to them combining their powers to get a better feeling on the couple in front of them.  
  
"What?" Allie asked in surprise. "We're not dating." She looked at Harry who was as confused as she was.  
  
"Oh. Still I would prefer it if you didn't share the same room. I know you say nothing will happen now-" He began to trail off but was interrupted by the accused that shook their heads and Harry responded.  
  
"It won't happen ever. I'd bed Snape before I decided to pursue a relationship with her." Allie watched wide-eyed and Hermione began to giggle.  
  
"Excuse me? I hope that doesn't mean I'm repulsive." She said in a huff as she took her hand back.  
  
"Not at all." Harry replied smoothly, ignoring Hermione who was still laughing at the Snape comparison. "I'd jump you if circumstances were different." The Granger's eyes widened and they all prepared to see Harry get smacked. Instead Allie grabbed his hand again and smiled happily.  
  
"Thanks! I'd jump you too." Harry beamed and they turned back towards the shocked Grangers. "That worked better with Draco in that Italian restaurant." Harry said quietly to Allie who nodded in remembrance of the event. Suddenly remembering something Harry sat up straight. "Hey, I forgot! We never met before. I'm Harry Potter and this is Allison Caprice." Allie waved cheerfully.  
  
"You can call me Allie."  
  
"Hello Harry and Allie. I take it you're both magic folk?" Both of them nodded.  
  
"Yeah. Both sides." Allie said as she fiddled with the pendant around her neck. She had been wearing it ever since she came back from that trip with Andrea and Harry hadn't asked her about it yet but was going to try tonight.  
  
"Sort of both sides for me too." Harry said as he ate a pack of sugar free fruit snacks.  
  
"Oh." Mrs. Granger said and looked to her husband to make up another topic but Harry beat them to it.  
  
"So you're both dentists." Both of the parents nodded this time.  
  
"You know," Allie said thoughtfully, "There are no dentists in the wizarding world. Now we have charms for everything. Or potions." Before the Grangers could reply Harry shot his cousin a smirk.  
  
"You mean like the Sciftan Potion?" He asked innocently, contrasting with the smirk he was just wearing. Her eyes widened and she looked at Harry fearfully.  
  
"You know about that?"  
  
"Yes. It was enlightening, to say the least." Harry replied. Hermione had been silent the whole time, very confused at where this conversation was going.  
  
Allie, however, brightened at this. "Yeah, did you see that scene after the mines?"  
  
"My goodness! I don't think people have those kind of muscles in their bodies to do that."  
  
"Yeah." Allie said dreamily.  
  
"What are you talking about?" Hermione finally said when she noticed both of them were getting starry-eyed.  
  
"Nothing." Harry said quickly, not wanting his friend to know what habits he was taking up when they weren't around. "So what's this big dinner for anyways?"  
  
"Well," Hermione replied with a blush, "Ron and I are sort of-" she waved her hands around in the air for a moment and the only thing Harry could think of was that they were not as graceful as Draco's.  
  
"Going out?" Allie guessed. At Hermione's nod, Harry began laughing.  
  
"It's about time! You should have been together since the Yule Ball." He sputtered out and began laughing again. It was almost like old times, Hermione thought.  
  
**********  
  
Harry had been at Hermione's for only one night and during that time, the bushy-haired Gryffindor couldn't help but notice that he spent a majority of his time with Allie. It wasn't that she didn't like Allie; it was just that she was slightly jealous. Just slightly. She padded over to Harry's room the morning of the dinner and raised her hand to knock when she heard peals of laughter floating to her from under the door. Opening the door gently, she watched as Allie began making mad gestures with her hands and acting something out while Harry rolled on his bed in laughter. She took another step in and, as if one, they both turned their heads to face her.  
  
"Hi, Hermione." Harry said brightly as he sat up. "Do you want to hang out with us?"  
  
"No, not exactly. I was wondering if you two wanted to go to the pool with me. It's a neighborhood pool down the street." She said nervously, feeling she had interrupted something.  
  
Harry's eyes brightened and he quickly replied. "Sure! Allie, do you want to come?" She shook her head and explained something about writing a letter before gliding back into her room. "I wonder if she's okay." He said to himself before springing off the bed and grabbing his swim trunks. "Go get changed and I'll check on Allie to see if everything's okay."  
  
"Okay. I'll meet you downstairs." She turned and left leaving Harry alone to get ready. Once he pulled the trunks on, he grabbed an extra shirt and went over to Allie's room. Instead of being at the desk writing a letter, she was concentrating on the pendant she kept around her neck. It was just a crystal set in a silver ring but now it seemed to be glowing purple.  
  
"I thought you were writing a letter." He said cautiously as she opened her eyes and focused her attention to him.  
  
"I lied, but I am trying to contact Andrea." She waved the pendant and Harry figured that it was a communication device, which would explain why she wore it so often.  
  
"Through that?" He pointed to the pendant and she nodded.  
  
"Yeah, it's like a locator spell only it allows me to use my powers and see how's she feeling." She looked at the ball and sighed. "Only now it's not working."  
  
"Is that bad?" Harry asked with his eyes furrowed.  
  
Allie nodded her head slowly. "The pendant can't find her and I can't read her. So she either has cloaked herself or someone did it for her. The only other option would be-" She trailed off and Harry knew what the other was. Death.  
  
"I bet she's cloaking herself. You've said before that since her powers began to grow that she's become more secretive." Allie made a noise of affirmation and Harry squeezed her hand reassuringly. "I'm sure she's fine." Allie gave him a small smile before looking down at the ball and falling into a meditation trance. "See you in a bit." He got up and left. Walking downstairs, he saw Hermione already at the bottom with a bag full of towels and other pool gear.  
  
"Ready?" She asked and he nodded in response. Picking up the pool gear, she led him out the door and down the street. "Was Allie okay?"  
  
"Just a little homesick." It wasn't really a lie; she probably did miss her home.  
  
"That's too bad." Hermione said evenly. Harry didn't think she really felt any sympathy for the other girl, but then again they had only just met. "I'm glad to have you here." She said and Harry smiled.  
  
"It's good to be here. I missed you and Ron a lot."  
  
"You seemed like you were having a lot of fun in your letters." Hermione commented and suddenly Harry understood. Living with two empaths had made him rather perceptive to others' emotions. His friend was jealous of the siblings and even Draco, though she didn't know about him yet.  
  
"You're not jealous are you?" He said incredulously and inwardly smiled when her ears turned pink. Not waiting for an answer, he continued. "You know, it's not like I'm going to leave you two. I can have more than two friends, so don't worry; you're not being replaced." He gave a soft smile that was returned by Hermione. By then, they had reached the pool and were slipping through the gate.  
  
"Thanks Harry." They padded over to some empty lounge chairs and toed off their shoes. Hermione immediately removed her top and shorts revealing her swimsuit before heading towards the edge of the water. Harry looked around for a moment and noticed that they were only about twelve other people and they had almost the whole side of the pool to themselves. Reaching under the hem of his shirt, he was just about to pull it off when the back of his hand came in contact with the Dark Mark that was still burned on his skin. He still hadn't told anyone, not even the siblings though sometimes he had the feeling they already knew, and Draco and him had reached a pack where they agreed not to speak of their injuries.  
  
Harry quickly pulled her shirt down and sat limply on the lawn chair. Hermione noticed this and walked over to him. "Well, aren't you coming in?"  
  
"I can't." From her look, she didn't believe him so he quickly thought of something. "I'm a little self-conscious about my torso since the incident." Her face softened and she went to sit next to him. It seemed that all the lessons with Draco in telling the truth by omitting some of it were paying off.  
  
"I'm sorry. I can just tan if you want." Harry nodded and leaned back against the chair. He wished he had brought a book or something to do. Then a rather nasty thought snuck into his head. If he just reclined against the chair and closed his eyes while going into a meditation trance to activate his powers, it would seem to Hermione and the rest of the pool that he was just sun tanning. Doing just that, he let his mind go free and break down any mental barriers in his head. Randolph and Allie had been trying to teach him to control his powers and harness them to his greatest advantage but so far he could only pick up traces of people's thoughts that sounded muddled.  
  
As of right now, his powers began to hum as they were reawakened and Harry let his body slip into a state of total awareness by thoughts only. He could hear Hermione's voice swimming around in his head and the young boy's who had just walked past him but nothing was clear yet. His mind brushed past the people of the pool and floated out, encompassing a large area of Hermione's neighborhood and leaving Harry feeling in tune with the world. All around the neighborhood was the faint buzz of people's thoughts except for one niche. Curious, Harry allowed his mind to focus on that one spot; it was a spot of emptiness and serenity. Having never felt such a space, Harry fine tuned his telepathy to search for any presence and was greeted with Allie's voice in his head.  
  
//Harry? What are you doing in my head?//  
  
// Sorry. // He thought sheepishly as he concentrated only on her voice and allowed the others to melt away. // I was just testing my telepathy and your head seemed like a big empty hole. //  
  
Allie's presence was filled with amusement and it made Harry smile. // That better not be an insult. My minds only empty so I can find Andrea. //  
  
//Have you found her? // Harry questioned.  
  
He felt a mental head shake and took a moment to reflect on how odd it was that he could feel her gestures by her thoughts alone. // No, she's still missing. //  
  
// Want some help? With our powers combined- //  
  
// We are Captain Planet! // She boomed in a voice deeper than her own. She felt Harry's confusion and giggled slightly. // Sorry, it's a muggle cartoon. // Harry mentally rolled his eyes at her. // But, yeah, sure. I could use the help. //  
  
// What do I do? //  
  
// Just relax and concentrate only on finding Andrea. I'll merge with you. // She instructed and Harry obeyed allowing his mind to only focus on her twin. Vague images flew through his head and he felt his mind being taken over water, land and mountains. Opening his mind's eyes, he could see dark haired people with tanned skin walking around in a town but they were gaunt, almost black and white. Their shading only gave Harry a clue to what nationality they were, which was probably Spanish. It was then he noticed only one figure in color, Andrea. Allie's presence was once again in his mind and he could feel Andrea's emotions and felt waves of apprehension and fear tinged with determination and hope wash over him.  
  
They watched patiently for a moment before Allie told him they could leave now. However, at that moment, another of the gray looking natives approached Andrea and wrapped a hand around her wrist before dragging her in an alley.  
  
// Wait! // Allie cried and Harry let his mind drift to find her twin again. They found her pinned up to a wall with her feet dangling off the ground and a sturdy hand wrapped around her throat. She fought against him while trying to draw air back into her lungs, but it was at that time that Harry felt his concentration slipping and he knew he was being drawn back to his body. // No. We need to stay! // Allie cried adamantly when she felt them being pulled back over mountains and land and water until they were back in Hermione's house. Harry felt the connection break and he slipped back to his body. Almost like the whole world was once on pause, the noise grew and he registered people talking around him as he sat up in his chair and gasped for breath, feeling like he had been the one held against the wall and not his distant relative. 


	18. The Diviners

I have decided not to number any of my chapter because I keep loosing count. Oh well. I was looking this over and realized I had a lot of mistakes in previous chapters and I want to thank everyone for not berating me for them. I would also like the time to thank my reviewers (there are so few!) and my readers (which I hope there are many of) and apologize for not getting it up earlier. No excuse besides pure laziness. I should also state another disclaimer because none of this is really mine besides the plot. I also forgot to give credit to Buffy the Vampire Slayer because I've stolen a couple lines. That's it! Enjoy and review.  
  
Looking over at Hermione, he noticed his friend was talking to a girl and a guy who were standing over her chair. He assumed they were friends of hers that she made before Hogwarts. She glanced over to his chair and noticed him rubbing his throat and staring at her for a moment.  
  
"Harry! You're awake." He gave a tired smile and waved to her friends who waved back. "Oh! This is Calvin and Bridget. We've been friends since before our boarding school." Harry nodded, it seemed he was right in his guess.  
  
"Hi, I'm Harry. I go to school with Hermione." He said politely while he tried to think of an excuse to leave and talk to Allie about what they saw.  
  
"Hi, Harry." Bridget said. "We've heard so much about you from Hermione. You and Ron are all she ever talks about!" Harry gave an unsure smile, slightly intimated by the girl's loud and excited nature.  
  
"Really. Well, I think I need to be getting back." He made a move to stand but was pulled down by Bridget.  
  
"Oh, Harry." Hermione sighed. "We just got here. Are you sure you can't stay?" She pleaded.  
  
Harry looked around frantically trying to think of an excuse because there was no way he could say that he hopped minds with their house guest and visited some place like Spain and saw his second cousin once removed get strangled. No, that would never work. He briefly considered using his scar as a reason but he didn't want to call attention to it and most likely she would want to owl Dumbledore and he didn't feel like lying again. Plus, he had to make an excuse serious enough for Hermione and feasible for her friends; he didn't want questions to arise from his hasty departure.  
  
"Sure, we can stay." He gave a weak smile and Hermione hugged him. He made sure to keep his inner arm away from her reach and then allowed himself to be dragged to the concession stand. Hermione bought him a soda and he sipped at it as he concentrated on projecting his emotions towards Allie who would hopefully come and find him. However, his mind and telepathy was so shot from that impromptu trip that he had trouble drinking, thinking and listening to Hermione's and her friends' meaningless chatter all at the same time.  
  
As if his prayers had been answered, or his emotions had been read, Allie strode into the pool area and quickly spotted Harry looking happy but giving off waves of unrest.  
  
"Harry." She said promptly and the other three stopped talking. "We need to talk." Without waiting for a response, she dragged him off until they were standing near the corner of the deep end of the pool.  
  
When they were out of hearing distance, he threw his arms around her in a hug. "You're my savior. You've got great timing." She didn't smile and Harry knew it was time to get down to business. "I know what you're thinking, but I can't go and find her again. I'm having trouble getting my feet to walk, separating my mind from my body would be almost suicidal."  
  
"But-" Allie protested. Harry held up a hand to stop her.  
  
"No. I can't do it. It's too much energy on both of our parts and if something's wrong, you'll feel it."  
  
She raised a hand to slap him but he caught it and stared into her hardened eyes. "I can't feel her trouble unless she's close or if she dies. I will not wait around for the latter." He held her hand tightly to his chest and waited for her breathing to even out.  
  
"Then what are you going to do?" She paused for a moment and thought.  
  
"Lend me Hedwig." Harry's eyes widened.  
  
"What? Why? You can't contact her. Besides, she's probably already gone by now." At her wide eyes, Harry thought of what he had said and quickly corrected himself. "I meant out of the country, not dead gone." She was shaking with anger and Harry understood how she felt, if it was Ron in this situation or Hermione, he would have already taken his wand and jinxed the person until they agreed to help. "Look, I understand what you're feeling, but as of now, we have no idea where she is and even if we did, we'd have to floo there and we might not be able to because of the Diviners Council." He felt proud that he got his point across but an even larger part was deeply distressed about not being able to help Andrea. Allie, meanwhile, was in deep thought going over everything that Harry said until something clicked.  
  
In a sly voice she spoke to Harry, making the other boy fidget nervously. "Harry, do you know who falls under the word diviner?" He shook his head and she continued in the same voice. "Well, there are psychics, mediums, mystics, seers, prophecy layers, spiritualists, soothsayers and what am I forgetting? Oh yes, telepaths." He stared at he wide eyes as her grin grew. "And as a telepath, you can floo into the Council headquarters and demand to know where she is." She gave him a pathetic look and, as eager as he was to help, he didn't want to have a whole council of diviners on his tail because he snuck into their headquarters.  
  
"I don't know how good an idea this is." He said hesitantly and this scolded himself. What happened to the confident person who was here just a few minutes ago? Nothing he could do now, especially since she was getting a feral look in her eyes.  
  
"Do it Harry or I'll throw you into the pool." She looked serious though it didn't seem like that big of a threat. She saw his small glimmer of confidence and then added, "White can be very transparent when wet, you know." He blanched but still shook his head. She sighed and then took both hands and pushed them against his chest sending him sprawling into the water on his back.  
  
Harry cleared off the water that was on his glasses, which had somehow managed to stay on, and treaded water while glaring at her. "Bitch." She smirked and Harry looked behind her to see Hermione and her friends running towards the pool. He looked at his arm and he could see the dark lines of the mark clearly against his shirt. Making a hasty decision, he conceded. "Fine, I'll do it." He swam to the other side of the pool and pulled his body up over the edge with ease before grabbing one of the towels in the beach bag Hermione had brought. He peeled off his shirt and quickly wrapped the towel around his shoulders, hiding his inner arm from view.  
  
"Harry!" Hermione said breathlessly as she ran over to him. "Are you okay? What was that fight about?"  
  
"Nothing." He replied while staring only at Allie and fixing his glare on her. "It was just a disagreement. I believe Allie and I need to return home. You should stay Hermione." She looked like she wanted to protest but saw the resolve on Harry's face and agreed. The two black haired teens walked out of the pool and left Hermione to stare at their rapidly retreating backs. She now understood that Harry had changed, for when he was fixing his gaze on Allie, he looked downright dangerous. It scared her.  
  
**********  
  
At the Granger's house, both of them had changed into their robes before leaving. Harry lit their electric fireplace and thanked God that the Granger's were gone and that they had a hefty supply of floo-powder above their fireplace.  
  
"Hold on to me." Allie said as she threw the powder in the fireplace before grabbing a handful for their trip. "Ready?" Harry nodded and briefly considered saying another location but decided not to test his luck in these fireplaces.  
  
She threw down the powder and Harry called out the same destination Andrea had said only a few days before. "Divine Right!" He closed his eyes as they spun out of sight and kept them closed until he felt solid ground rush up to hit his feet and send him sprawling across the floor. He helped Allie up who had fallen under him and glanced around at their surroundings.  
  
It seemed they were in a parlor, an old one at that. Faded tapestries hung on the walls and antique high-back chairs were seated in front of the fireplace they had just come one of. It reminded him of an old-fashioned Gryffindor common room as it was done in gold and red. He stepped across the rug that was black with soot from the fireplace and trekked to a wooden door that he pulled open. Allie and him stepped outside into a stone corridor like the ones in Hogwarts. Only there were no moving pictures, just tapestries that depicted different events on one side of the wall and a lot of windows that overlooked the courtyard on the other. Someone walked passed them, dressed in robes of silver and carrying a large book. She didn't give them a second glance and they quickly darted off towards the direction she came. They entered a row of hallways and Allie surreptitiously opened a door just a peak and glanced around inside. After seeing no one was in, she opened it wider and they walked in for a moment. It appeared to be a bedroom and a rather plain one at that. The rooms here were almost like convents for all they had was a single bed on one end of the room, a writing desk under a window and two bookshelves against the opposite wall. There were only two chairs, one that went to the desk and a comfy sitting chair that was under a torch by the shelves. A small bathroom that was behind one of the two doors in the room only contained only a sink, a toilet and a small shower. Across from the door leading to the bathroom was an armoire that only contained robes of deep blood red.  
  
Harry's eyes widened at this for every piece of clothing was red with the exception of black slacks a white shirt and a white cloak. There were no robes of any other color. Harry grabbed Allie and they ran back out the door but not without coming face to face with the design on the back of the door.  
  
"The eye of Horus." Allie whispered as she stared at the Egyptian eye that was centered in a pyramid. She gently traced it and stepped back. When she did this, the eye closed its lid before snapping open revealing a human eye beneath it that was looking at the two. Harry froze in fear before regaining his wits and pulling Allie out the door. While they ran down the corridor door swung open on their hinges revealing the eyes that had come to life and were now looking at them as they flew down the hallway. Allie screamed as a door swung open right in front of them, almost smacking her in the face. She looked up and saw a blue eye watching her. Harry grabbed her hand and was about to pull her along when a skeletal hand clasped onto their shoulders and turned them around.  
  
**********  
  
Hermione came back to her house with the intention to get ready for the dinner, which was only in about four hours. She had stayed talking to her friends and catching up with them until two o'clock, but it had begun to get cold and she left with the intent on checking on her two houseguests.  
  
She went up to Harry's room and saw his general clutter on the floor but he was nowhere to be seen. Thinking they might both be in Allie's room, she checked the other girls and still found no sign of them other than the wet swim trunks and a shirt she found in the bathroom. She noticed Harry's sandals that he had worn to the pool were in the entry way and the tennis shoes that were their since yesterday were gone. They must have gone somewhere, she concluded and went to search for a note.  
  
Hermione checked the kitchen but it was on her way back to her living room that she noticed there was a fire burning in the grate and small specks of floo powder were on the ground.  
  
"They must have floo-ed out." She said to herself and felt slightly relieved. If they had time to get their shoes and if Harry had time to change out of his swimwear, than they must not of left because of an attack. She sighed and went to the bathroom to take a shower. Hermione's only wish was that they were safe and would make it to this dinner tonight.  
  
**********  
  
Harry was marched down the hallway with the stranger's hand still clasped on his shoulder. He glared at Allie who hadn't said anything since the corridor with the eyes. He looked up at the man that found him and quickly turned his head away, hoping he covered up his shiver for the man could probably feel it under his hand.  
  
When Harry had turned around, and glanced at him, the first thing he noticed was the blood red robes he was wearing. Secretly, he hoped the room they went through wasn't his because he scared Harry just by his appearance. So instead of staring at the face of his captor, he glanced at the pale, bony, and hairless hand that was clamped to his left shoulder. Odd how the limb matched it's owner so perfectly because besides donning red robes, the odd thing about the man was his lack of hair except for the eyebrows which were so fair and thin that it put Draco's light locks to shame. His skin was so pale it seemed almost translucent and made his unusual violet eyes stand out more prominently.  
  
He gestured towards the inside of a room and Harry allowed himself to be guided in where seven people, five women and two men, sat at a table that was raised on a platform about five feet higher than the bench he and Allie sat on.  
  
"You may go now Caleb." A deep voice spoke and the man bowed his head before gliding away. The two teens then turned their attention to the tall and graceful black woman that was watching them from her spot at the table, which was three before the end. Her eyes, like the newly named Caleb's, were strange too except hers were a natural color, green like Harry's only paler, more serene and wiser. She stood and tossed her long black hair over her shoulder before looking down on them. He noticed she was wearing green robes. Before when he complained there was no diversity with the robes, he couldn't help but gawk at the rainbow of colors in front of him. There were the ones he had already seen before, the red, and silver, now green but there was also a sky blue, purple, brown, and a pale yellow. "Hello young ones. I am Kali and we are the Diviner High Council." Allie and Harry just nodded. "We take great care to make sure no one is entering this domain without our permission, however, today, you have gotten past our guards. How did you do this?" She sat down and the man in the red stood up.  
  
"I suggest you tell us for we have ways of finding out." He said scathingly as he resumed his seat.  
  
"Quiet, Malcolm. They will tell us without our probing." The woman in the blue who was seated in the middle said softly. Although she was small and seemed delicate, she carried herself with an air of authority and Harry knew she was a force to be reckoned with.  
  
"We floo-ed here." Allie said simply and her statement was met with raised eyebrows.  
  
"Ah, Allison Caprice Snape. We have not had you here since you were a mere child. What brings you back?" The woman in the yellow said. She seemed friendly to Harry and with that in mind and the color she was wearing, he imagined that if she went to Hogwarts, she would be a Hufflepuff.  
  
"I'm here to find my sister. I know she's in trouble somewhere near Spain."  
  
The man in the brown spoke up next. "Know." He rolled the word around in his mouth as if he was trying to figure it out. "To know, you must possess great confidence in your statement. I myself rarely know; I only think." Harry regarded him oddly, having no idea what he just meant. Allie did however.  
  
"I saw her being held against a wall and strangled by someone."  
  
"But you do not possess the sight." Said the woman in purple as she regarded her curiously.  
  
Allie shook her head. "No I don't. I still only have the gift of empathy, but Harry is telepathic and we combined our powers to find her." There was a hushed conversation after this and Harry felt his face heat up when he noticed all the members taking quick glances at him before returning to their discussion. Finally Kali, or the woman in the green, stood up and walked down the steps over to Harry.  
  
"Hold still, young one." She placed both hands at his temples and closed her eyes. Harry felt like something was probing his mind and figured that this woman must also be a telepath and was trying to see if he was. Trying to move this along, he dropped his mental shields and let her mind enter his. She took a quick scan before she dropped her hands and faced the table. "He has the gift of telepathy."  
  
"What's his strength?" The woman in the blue asked.  
  
"First division, level seven." She said confidently as she reassumed her seat. Harry could barely keep the surprised look of his face at the amount of knowledge she gathered in such a short time.  
  
"Well, as fascinating as Harry is," Allie said, "I'd kind of like to know if my sister's alright."  
  
"I'm fine." Came a voice from the doorway and both teens jumped and turned around.  
  
"Andrea!" Allie cried as she went to hug her sister. "Are you okay?" She said frantically as she looked her over. Truth be told, she looked a right mess to Harry; she had bruises on one side of he cheek and her lower jaw was swelling slightly. When she spoke, her voice was raspy from the abuse she received. She had the bruises in the shape of fingers around her neck and her purple robes were torn slightly and covered in dirt and even a little blood. Her hair and face were not much better and Harry assumed that she had just gotten back with no time to get fixed up.  
  
"Hey, did you just get back?" Harry asked as he gave her a hug.  
  
"Yeah. Actually, I was heading towards the healer's when Caleb found me and made it clear that I should come here. Glad I did." She gave her sister and Harry a smile before going up to the council and producing a folder. "Mission accomplished. Permission to receive treatment?"  
  
"Granted." The woman in blue said as she glanced over the report. "Nice work." She added in a more affable tone. Andrea just nodded her head before heading out the door and grabbing the wrists of Harry and Allie.  
  
Once outside, she didn't stop her furious pace and Harry thought she might be angry with them for some reason so he decided to ask her. She turned around and looked a little surprised but shook her head.  
  
"I'm not angry, Harry. I just want you and Allie to trust me; I don't need a body guard chasing after me because I can take care of myself."  
  
"I know that, but when we get images of you being strangled, we tend to react and want to help you." Allie said pointedly.  
  
"But you shouldn't have been checking up on me. We planned this: once in the morning and again at night. None of this would have even happened if you had abided by those rules." She said as she opened a large wooden door where a woman decked out in white was healing various people around the room.  
  
"What were you doing there anyway?" Harry asked as they sat down on a cot.  
  
"It was a mission of mine. I can't tell you much about it."  
  
"Well, why were you cloaked?" Allie persisted.  
  
Andrea sighed. "The man I was going after was a telepath and if I hadn't of cloaked and shielded my mind he would have found me and the mission would have been all for nothing."  
  
Harry looked a little alarmed at the thought of the Council sending out a young girl for a job that required an older and more learned person. He stated this to Andrea and she just shook her head sadly.  
  
"You don't understand, Harry. I take these missions; I'm not forced into them. And as for the age and experience, no one here gives a shit about that. They only care about your power level and your ability to carry out the tasks. Besides, I've had training, it's not like I'm inexperienced." She opened her mouth to defend her job again but was cut off by a loud metallic sounding clatter coming from the other side of the door. She stood up quickly and rushed over to a fallen Caleb who was shaking in fear and surrounded by a metal tray with spilled medical utensils on the floor.  
  
"Caleb." He didn't look at her while she wrapped her arms around him to steady him. "Caleb, come back to us." Still nothing, but by this time, the woman in green who was at the Council rushed in and Andrea relinquished her hold on the man so Kali could hold him to her chest.  
  
"Caleb, come back to me. Just listen to my voice." She whispered soothingly as she rocked him gently. He stopped trembling and fell into her arms. Kali looked up at Andrea. "He'll be fine but something in here is spooking him. Go get Malcolm." She directed to Andrea who flew out of the room without a second thought to exhaustion or her wounds. Caleb turned around and faced her before winding his arms tightly around her and kissing her cheek gently. Harry heard a loud scuttle of feet and turned to see Andrea and the man in the Council who was dressed in red following behind.  
  
"Caleb, what did you see?" Andrea asked as Malcolm walked into the center of the room and fell to his knees with his eyes closed. He seemed to be in deep concentration and was disturbed by no one, which was strange because by this time, many diviners had gathered around the entrance and were peering into the room. Instead of responding to the questions, he buried his face deeper into Kali's shoulder and was shaking again. Realizing she was getting no answers, she turned to watch Malcolm who was still in the same position and stayed that way for a moment or two. Suddenly, he got up and turned to face everyone.  
  
"There are no harmful spirits in this room and from what I can gather, it seems we have a different matter on our hands." Malcolm said and everyone waited patiently. "We've got a dream-weaver on the premise." This brought cries of shock and outrage and many glances at Harry and Allie, the new comers. "No, it's not these two." Malcolm said as he walked out the door. "I'm alerting Cassandra. Everyone, go about your business and Kali take Caleb to rest. You two have the rest of the day off. Andrea, I want to see you healed and without these tag-alongs." His voice said from down the hallway. Just as he said, everyone scattered to different places and Kali helped Caleb stand and wrapped an arm around his waist. He leaned his head against her shoulder and they walked off, leaving Harry, Andrea and Allie alone in the room.  
  
"What's a dream-weaver?" Harry asked at last.  
  
Andrea motioned for them to follow her and they were back in the healer's wards getting treatment for the various bruises on her face and neck.  
  
"Can't do a thing about the soreness in your throat, dear. Some tea might help, though." One of the healers said after she was cleaned up. "Now go back to your room and rest some." Andrea slid off her cot and the three of them headed towards her room. It was the same as all the other room, the plain white bed, tiny window and writing desk with adjacent bookshelves. However, her armoire held deep purple robes.  
  
"What's a dream-weaver?" Harry repeated as he sat in the empty chair as the twins took the bed.  
  
"A dream-weaver is a telepath whose strength is invading people's minds during dreams. They're rather powerful as they can make dream apparition appear in the real world or the dream world." She coughed a bit from her sore throat and went to the bathroom to grab a glass of water. "With one on the loose, they could make anyone's greatest fears come to life because these aren't just holographic images. The apparition can touch you and it has a brain so it can speak to you. Usually dream-weavers don't last long enough to be powerful as they usually get their mind trapped in the dreamscape and never come out. Those that do have the power are often against the Council, claiming that we want to limit their powers. Having one this close to us, well, it could be anything or anyone as it can often take the shape of the apparition." She took another sip of water and Harry nodded.  
  
"Okay. What do you think Caleb saw?" Andrea looked down at the water in her hands.  
  
"Caleb's a medium; he can talk to the dead and sometimes see them. He confided in me about his parent's reaction to his gifts once when I was younger and had a harder time dealing with the fact that I couldn't save them all. Well, after the Council found him and explained his powers, he told his parents who did not react well to say the least. They called him a devil, disowned him and even tried to burn the evil out by dropping acid down his throat." Harry and Allie sat horrified at what his parents would do. "Yeah, it was awful. The acid burned his throat so badly that it damaged his vocal cords and now they're beyond repair. That was eleven years ago and he hasn't been able to speak a word since. Anyway, that night we talked, and by talked I mean communicated with sign language, he told me that his worse fear was the night he woke up chained to his bed while his parents pried open his mouth and shoved the acid down. It haunted him for three years every night and now it's a rare thing when that nightmare happens."  
  
"You think that's what he saw?" Allie asked as she rubbed her throat unconsciously. Andrea nodded.  
  
"Yeah. Like I've told you, they can actually touch things and when I found him, he had red marks all over his wrist."  
  
"But he didn't get any acid down his throat." Harry said.  
  
"No he didn't." Andrea agreed. "But this wasn't meant to kill him. Dream- weavers thrive off of fear, not pain or death."  
  
"Well, can we help?" Allie said and Harry nodded.  
  
"Yep." The both looked excited and leaned closer. "For starters, you can go home." Their faces fell and she rolled her eyes. "You heard what Malcolm said, we don't need any stragglers. I'll be fine and I'd rather know you two were fine as well."  
  
"Do we have to go now?" Harry asked, dejectedly. Andrea glanced at her watch for a moment.  
  
"You can stay for dinner if you want. Though I must warn you, it'll be all vegetarian. The diviners believe that meat clouds our perceptiveness." Harry snorted and then looked up when he realized something.  
  
"What time is it?" he asked.  
  
"Five thirty." Came the prompt reply that caused Harry to jump out of his chair.  
  
"Shit. We've got that dinner to go to at six." Allie jumped up two and the three of them raced down to the arrival room. "Andrea, do you want to come with us?" She shrugged for a moment and then grabbed them and pulled them off to another door. She stopped in front of an elderly lady was shuffling papers.  
  
"I would like to request a leave for tonight."  
  
"Of course dear." Came the tired reply. "You're not the first. Seems that many are trying to avoid the dream-weaver. Have a nice night."  
  
"And you as well." With that, they headed back towards the arrival room and hopped into the fireplace, floo-ing back to Hermione's. 


	19. Wayward Wizards

Okay-opening notes. Firstly, I will take my poll down eventually as I've decided it shall be Remus/Sirius and for all the people who didn't want to see any one left out, that won't happen. I'll come up with something, but as I've just adopted the Re/Si pairing as my new favorite I have to add it in the story. Secondly, I still feel bad about not updating and I know all of you are probably like 'Gah! I wish she would just stop apologizing and get on with the updating!' I know, and I'm pitiful, but I just finished my finals so I'm able to update.  
  
However, don't think that I won't continue my story 'cause I love it to death. I have about twenty pages of the sequel complete. I had a hundred or so but then I decided it sucked and not in the good H/D way and deleted it.  
  
Speaking of our lovely couple, my beta said that I didn't have enough and for this I'm not apologizing, but I will give you reasons why not to stone me.  
  
Firstly, I've created an AU on the fifth book, and although every fan fic is an AU in someway, mine is extremely different from the cannon. And because I've added a bunch of new characters, I've had to not just develop our main ones, but also the new ones and how they connect. Thirdly, there's the difficult plot. I change my mind about it every time I sit down to write and yet I keep finding ways to make it more complicated and boring-a skill, I know. How does this relate to Harry and Draco, you may ask? Well, first I have to develop both to fit the plots and then I have to develop their friendship because while going from mortal enemies to shagging partners is fun, I need them both to depend on each other like Harry does with Hermione and Ron. All of this is in the complicated plot. And it happens about fifty pages in the sequel I think and trust me, it's going to be quick. Not quickie up against a wall quick followed by pages of Harry angst as he continues to deny his feelings and his sexuality and pages of Draco plotting on ways to get a willing Harry into bed with him again, which seems a bit redundant as he will have already proven that he can get into our hero's pants with his consent. Wow, that was a whole plot right there, but not mine. Anyway, it's going to be quick as in 'cut the crap and let's just get right to it'. Yes, that quick, but hopefully not underdeveloped.  
  
Now, I've talked for about a page but I thought we should all know a little bit about it. But if you're a person WHO SKIPS OVER THE AUTHOR NOTES JUST TO GET TO THE JUICY BITS WHICH WON'T HAPPEN FOR A WHILE then shame on you. But yay to all the readers and reviewers in the past chapter cause I feel special.  
  
On with the fic!!!  
  
*********  
  
When they arrived, Hermione's house was in a state of panic about the misplacement of two of their guests.  
  
"Are you sure they're not upstairs?" Her mother asked as her father was pulling on his dinner jacket.  
  
"Yes. I don't know where they are." At a swoosh of air, three heads turned to see one person fall out of their fireplace, then another and one more after that. "Harry! Where have you been?" She questioned as she put her hands on her hips. "I hope you all have time to get ready because out reservations are in forty-five minutes."  
  
"Don't worry, Hermione. I'll be ready in time." He said as he brushed some soot out of his hair.  
  
"And who is this?" Kate Granger asked as she noticed the other girl. "Better yet, why are there two of them?"  
  
"Oh, this is Allie's twin, Andrea."  
  
"Charmed, I'm sure." She replied as she and Allie ran up stairs.  
  
"Don't mind her, it's been a rough day." He said as he scampered up the stairs. He quickly jumped into the shower and cleaned himself off before getting out five minutes later and tried to figure out what to wear. He had noticed that Hermione was wearing a knee length skirt and a sweater set over that and Mrs. Granger wore something similar. Mr. Granger was in khakis and a white dress shirt with a blue blazer so the style seemed like fancy casual, whatever that meant. Rummaging through the clothes he bought, he grabbed a pair of black dress pants and a button up shirt that was bluish-purple, though Draco had called it 'blueberry.' How no one had figured out that he was at least bisexual was beyond him. He quickly dressed and dried his hair, adding to it just a tiny bit of gel so it was more manageable before tying it up and running downstairs. On his way down, he passed Andrea who was running around in her towel and sneaking into Harry's room to use his hair dryer.  
  
"You clean up nice, Potter." She said and Harry laughed, remembering that she had said those words on the first day they met.  
  
"I'd say the same, but you're not wearing anything. Do you even have clothes here?" He asked for he had not remembered her bringing any.  
  
"Call it a hunch, but I believe Allie and I might be the same size." She said and disappeared back into her sister's room. Harry laughed to himself as he went downstairs. He saw Hermione pacing anxiously while her parents were sitting in two chairs in front of the fireplace reading magazines. Giving her a hug, he whispered some words in reassurance in her ear, which caused her to smile.  
  
"Thanks Harry." She surveyed his outfit. "Wow, you really learned how to dress well." She commented.  
  
"It helps when you have clothes that actually fit you." He quipped. "You look wonderful yourself. The twins will be down in a bit." She blushed and said her thanks.  
  
A moment later, he saw a flash of red and glanced over to see his friend stumbling out. Three more gushes of air and the flaring up of fire had brought all the younger Weasleys and five 'pops' signaled the others arriving.  
  
"Hey Hermione, Harry!" Ron said as he greeted his friends and gathered them in a hug. Greetings were exchanged and they spent a few minutes chatting with one another.  
  
"Congratulations mate." Harry said as he clapped a hand on Ron's back. "But if you hurt her, I hurt you." He said with over protectiveness, making both of his friends laugh.  
  
"Thanks Harry and don't worry, I won't. Now all we have to do is get you hooked up with someone." He nudged Harry who blushed and then turned his head when he heard two sets of feet on the stairs.  
  
"No need." He said as he walked over to the stairs and gave each girl an arm when they reached the bottom. All three linked arms and they walked back over to Ron and Hermione. "I already have two lovely ladies." They both rolled their eyes.  
  
"Are you going to introduce us?" Ron asked as he smiled at the two girls. Hermione tightened her hand that was holding his as if to remind Ron that he was taken.  
  
"This is Allison and Andrea." They each waved at their respective names.  
  
"You can call me Allie." She said as she detached herself and went to go look at herself in the mirror.  
  
"Conceited bit-" Andrea began but was silence by Harry's hand.  
  
"Don't speak that way in front of the innocent children." He gave a pointed look towards his school friends who looked indignant. Andrea gave a wink before going off and finding her sister.  
  
"Don't know how innocent these two are." She said with a laugh as she sauntered off. To Harry, her voice was sounding strained. He didn't understand why she couldn't take a potion to soothe her throat like Draco had in the hospital. It was only a matter of time, Harry thought, before her throat would begin to bother her badly.  
  
"Have I met those two before?" Ron asked and Hermione rolled her eyes.  
  
"Yes Ron. They tried to curse your parts off in the hospital." Harry burst out laughing and sent a telepathic high-five to Allie for that.  
  
Ron blanched. "I thought that was just a dream." He said quietly and inched closer to his girlfriend.  
  
Andrea, meanwhile, on her way over to Allie, almost ran into one of the redheads. She politely excused herself, but when she looked up into his face, she gasped.  
  
"Charlie?"  
  
He looked confused for a second but then something clicked in his mind. "Andrea Caprice?" At her nod, he smiled. "Wow, you've certainly grown up. It's been what, two years?"  
  
"Yeah. Are you still working with dragons?" She asked conversationally.  
  
Charlie replied eagerly. "Yeah, though I wouldn't be anymore if not for you." She waved the gratitude away. "So are you still working with the Council?"  
  
She gave a noise of affirmation. "I just got back today from an assignment." It was then that her voice began to grow harsher. She cleared her throat and tried to continue on with their conversation. A few minutes later, her throat was getting raspier.  
  
"Andrea? Are you okay?"   
  
"Fine." She croaked, but began to cough harshly. Allie rushed over with a cloth in hand and passed it to Andrea who began coughing into it. Harry approached the three and noticed that the cloth had specks of blood on it and some of the substance dripped down from the corner of her mouth.  
  
"I told you not to over do it." Charlie was looking concerned and Harry rushed off to get a glass of water. When he returned, he saw everyone crowding around them.  
  
"Look, we appreciate your help, but I don't think this is in the dentist field." Allie said as the Grangers tried to look into her mouth. Harry brushed past them and gave Allie the water.  
  
"Can she take this?"  
  
Allie nodded and passed it to Andrea who choked slightly but managed to keep it down. "Good. I think I've got some aspirin in here." Allie said as she dug through her purse and produced two, but Andrea pushed them aside and turned to Harry.  
  
"I've got some in Allie's room. Will you come with me?" He nodded, although he found this request very strange. Together they climbed the stairs and when they reached her room, Andrea closed the door and pulled Harry to the bed. "Open your link." He did as she said and concentrated on getting into Andrea's head. It was fairly easy for she was right in front of him and all of her shields were dropped. He floated inside for a while and then noticed a mental Andrea who was dressed in her purple robes again.  
  
"You can create yourself a body, you know." She said in his mind with some amusement and he did as he said and saw himself standing there in the clothes he was wearing that evening.  
  
"Why are we here?" He asked. It felt strange to be thinking but have it projected as if he was speaking.  
  
"I've come to warn you."  
  
Harry's brow furrowed. "About what?"  
  
"That thing on your arm." He looked down and saw the Dark Mark staring back at him. "At seven o'clock, Voldemort will summon his Death Eaters for a punishment. It's the first meeting since that attack on you; he hasn't been strong enough to have one before."  
  
Harry looked frightened and touched the mark gently. "What will happen?" He asked quietly.  
  
"Voldemort uses these Marks as a way of communication, ownership, but also as a way to connect them all. If he places his finger on anyone's mark and mutters a spell, the spell will affect everyone who carries the mark, willingly or not. Tonight, he'll use the Cruciatius Curse five minutes after seven. You need to get yourself out of anyone's sight at that time and after it because I have no idea how long he plans to use it. Do you understand?"  
  
"I do." He said quietly. "Where should I go?"  
  
"Normally, I'd say Council Headquarters, but since the dream-weaver is still about, we could try St. Mungo's or Hogwarts."  
  
"Why the hospital?" Harry asked.  
  
Andrea shrugged. "The symptoms from that curse are almost the same as symptoms from a magic detox. Yours is gone because you were drained by someone or something, I'm not sure what. The council knows, you could ask them later."  
  
Harry hastily made his decision. "I'll go to Hogwarts, but how will I get there?"  
  
"Father stays there the whole summer usually so the best option would be to floo to his room. He'll be at the meeting anyway so it's not like he'll be able to question you. If you're still there when he comes back, say it was your scar and tell Dumbledore what I've told you."  
  
Harry nodded but then thought of something. "Wait, you know your father is a Death Eater?"  
  
"Of course." She said, giving him a funny look. "We don't keep secrets in our family unless it's to prevent hurt. My visions are secret because sometimes if I tell someone, the outcome's different from the desired one. Father told us he was a spy so that we wouldn't be scared or frightened if he was hurt through the mark or if I had a vision from the past that involved him." She explained gently and Harry began to understand. "You know, Harry, we're not like other children our age. We don't get to avoid trouble because it finds us and we can't pretend everything we go through is just a dream because people die from our denial."  
  
"I know." He said quietly. And it was the truth, all of it. Even Ron and Hermione, both of whom had helped him in several dangerous situations, never had to make the difficult decisions; they were just along for the ride. None of them suffered because of who they were because they choose everything they were. "That's probably why I like hanging out with your family, you understand that life is difficult but it doesn't bring you down."  
  
"Our family has never been an easy one." She agreed. "It's time to go back." Harry nodded and pulled himself out of her mind and back into his. He opened his eyes and found himself in the same position he was in before and got up off her bed. Andrea was up as well and found two aspirin that she quickly swallowed with the glass of water that she had brought from upstairs.   
  
"Let's go." Harry said once he noticed that in this world, Andrea couldn't talk. "They're probably worried." She nodded and they walked downstairs to face thirteen people who were all looking up towards the stairwell.  
  
"Are you okay?" Allie asked. Andrea signed something to her and Harry realized that she must have learned how to sign from communicating with Caleb and that she had probably taught it to her sister for Allie seemed to understand the meaning. "That's good. I guess we can leave." She grabbed her twin's and Harry's hands and pulled them to the door.  
  
"Wait, dears." Mrs. Weasley said. "Andrea, if you'd like, I could go back to my home and get you a throat soothing potion." Andrea shook her head and signed something to Allie.  
  
The empath looked surprised for a second. "Really? Huh." She then turned to Mrs. Weasley. "That's very kind of you but that potion contains slug mucus and in order to get that, you have to kill it. We're against that." All of the Weasleys looked slightly sick and Harry assumed it was because they had taken the potion at one time. "Well, let's go. We're going to be late." She said airily as Andrea rolled her eyes and Harry laughed quietly.  
  
The oldest Weasleys disapparated away with a small 'pop' leaving the other ten to scramble into two of the Granger's cars and head off to the restaurant. They were already seated when the rest of the Weasley family walked in from their secluded apparation spot.  
  
For a good part of the evening, the dinner went off without a hitch. The four parents often embarrassed their children, making the conversation light and lively. Percy who knew sign language was sitting next to Andrea and absorbing any information she had to tell about her home in Hell, Michigan. Her sister was talking to Bill, Fred and George about topics that ranged from her older brother (a subject Andrea wouldn't touch) to pranks she had pulled at her old school. Harry was conversing with his best friends and often Ginny who sat next to him and kept giving the Snape twins evil eyes for some reason he couldn't fathom. It seemed that the two were not as welcomed as he thought for Ron was shying away from the two as if they were going to curse him. But through all this amusement, Harry couldn't help but let his mind drift. Andrea had lent him her watch so he would know when to leave and as it grew closer to seven, he began to get jitterier.  
  
"Harry, mate, are you alright?" Ron asked as he noticed Harry pushing his food around his plate with a fork.  
  
He gave a weak smile and checked his watch again. 6:50. It was getting late, almost too late and he needed to get to a fireplace soon. "Fine. Just a little tired." Ron nodded sympathetically and left Harry to wonder how he would get to a wizard fireplace. Instead of coming up with an answer, he felt his glass of water being knocked over. Jumping up quickly, he dabbed at his pants with a napkin.  
  
"Oh, dear." Allie said. "Why don't you go to the restroom and clean that up?" She commented easily though he caught the pointed look in her eyes. "Andrea, you said you had to go also. Why don't you lead?" The other girl nodded and they both headed off towards the bathroom. When they reached it, she pulled Harry behind a wall that shielded the girl's bathroom from any part of the restaurant. She held up a vile and swirled the black potion around.  
  
"What is that?" Harry asked as he took the vial into his hands.  
  
"Sciftan Potion. Draco told you about it?" Harry nodded and noted that her voice was thick and raspy. She had probably been saving it in order to tell him about the plan. "Drink it and concentrate on going to the Grangers' home. Don't try for Hogwarts; it's too far for a first time user. The destination for the floo-ing is Severus Snape's Quarters." She was coughing harshly now but managed to reach into her purse and pullout another vial. "Numbing potion. Just in case." She gave him a long hug and then stepped back and waited for him to drink it. "Concentrate." She warned as he downed the potion in one gulp. Harry did as she said and then closed his eyes. He felt his world spin around and around and pull his body into all different directions. When the world righted again, he opened his eyes and found, to no small relief, that he was back in the Granger's living room.  
  
He turned on their electric fireplace again, shouted the destination and spun off to the school. Harry was greeted with dark stone walls and green tapestries with silver snakes blazoned across them. There was a small sitting area filled with dark leather chairs and tables made of ebony. He perched himself on the couch and felt slightly out of place and at a loss of what to do. Before, he had never known when danger was approaching and now he was sitting here waiting for it to happen. The clock read a minute after seven so he quickly downed the potion and placed the vial on the far end of the coffee table so he wouldn't smash it if he went into a fit. So there he sat, waiting for the four minutes to pass.  
  
He laid back on the couch and took off his shoes but now the time only read 7:03. Breathing out harshly, he let his eyes close and began to relax. It was then that he felt a soft pain in his scar, probably lessened by the potion but even now it grew stronger. He hissed as he felt the familiar burning sensation and realized how little his scar had bothered him this summer. Now only a minute to go. He suddenly felt a sharp pull coming from the back of his mind along with his burning scar. Then he felt only the raw sensation of having his mind ripped from his body and pulled elsewhere as his scream tore out through the empty chambers of Snape.  
  
************  
  
'What am I going to tell them?' Andrea thought as she made her way back towards the table. They all looked up, expecting Harry and gave her no notice when they realized she was by herself. Allie felt the waves of tension roll of her sister and quickly sent feelings of reassurance because she knew of the plan and its many risks. But Allie had to admit, it was the best plan they had and she hoped it'd work.  
  
A minute passed and they all paid their separate bills, the twins taking Harry on theirs, before Allie stood up and tried to usher everyone outside. "Hey, everyone, Harry said that he would meet us outside. So if you could all please move towards the exit-" She was met with stubborn faces and sighed knowing it would be difficult.  
  
"We'll wait for him." Hermione said, linking arms with Ron who nodded.  
  
"He won't be here." Allie said, thinking fast. "He's already left. Something happened and he's rather embarrassed to be seen." The bushy haired Gryffindor looked slightly concerned and a little disbelieving but followed her family outside anyways. The older Weasleys disapparated leaving nine behind who were all climbing into the two cars. Each girl gave a discreet nod to the other before climbing into the front passenger seats with a small gray ball clutched in their fists.  
  
"Close the door, would you?" Allie asked when two thirds of the Gryffindor trio left the door open to wait for Harry. "It's freezing." They complied with strange looks on their face; it was only summer after all. She squeezed the ball tightly until the gelatin coating popped and released the gray air into the car while she dived out and locked all the doors. Mr. Granger was too new to magic to recognize that it might be a potion, but Ron and Hermione did but both were unable to open their locked doors. When the smoke finally filtered out of the car, all three were slumped in their seats. Allie looked over to Andrea who nodded her head to her as she hoisted the body of Mrs. Granger out of her seat and reassumed the driving position, just like Allie did a minute later. Both cars pulled out of the restaurant without any of the muggles giving them a second glance.  
  
'Phase one is complete.'  
  
***********  
  
Harry was once again suspended in thin air only this time the area around him wasn't peaceful and welcoming; it was hectic and unstable. He watched through eyes that weren't his as black shapes laid on the ground, baring their necks to their master as they bowed down on the dirt ground of the cemetery.  
  
'They have no idea they're about to get slaughtered.' Harry thought as he saw the unmasked white faces that revealed people eager to please Voldemort. He now knew that he was in Voldemort's mind; who else would have the Death Eaters bowing at his feet and have a psyche as twisted as the one he was in? It was a strange feeling to be in someone else's mind, definitely not a trip worth being repeated however. But Harry, who had always gone against Voldemort's beliefs, could now understand why the Slytherin chose them. He knew that in his rightful mind that he wouldn't be sympathizing with this madman but here it was hard to keep his memories straight from Voldemort's and he had difficulty trying to recall what beliefs were his.  
  
Right now, Voldemort was in the middle of a derogatory speech: let's kill Harry Potter, mudbloods must die, I am your supreme ruler, blah, blah, blah. Finally, he raised his wand and struck down three of his followers, not killing them but giving them some nasty jinxes making the others squirm in fear. The wand was raised again and Harry could hear the spell in his mind, almost like he had dredged in up from his own memories though he had never heard of this particular curse. Down went another two before he grabbed the fallen one closest to him and pressed his wand against his mark and hissing one word.  
  
'Crucio.' At once, all the Death Eaters rolled around on the floor in torment as they grabbed at their arms, trying to deaden the pain. Harry felt the curse rip through his body and his mind screamed as it tore at the darkness that was Voldemort's mind. He hoped that the link between them didn't go just one way and that the pain that he was feeling now would be shared with Voldemort, but from the looks of things, he seemed unaffected. With his strength wavering, Harry felt himself slip back into his body but not before seeing a young girl carried over to Voldemort with her hands bound and her mouth gagged. He realized that she looked familiar and then it clicked, through Voldemort's mind or his own. She was a Parkinson, Pansy's younger sister. He prayed that she would be alright for tonight and made a promise to himself that when he got back to Hogwarts, he would be more understanding towards the Slytherins if this was how their summers went.   
  
***********  
  
Harry awoke the next morning with his faced pressed against the plush carpet in between the couch and the coffee table with a pounding migraine and a bruise on his temple where he hit his head on the table when he fell off the couch. He struggled to get up but the movement made him sick and he nearly vomited but managed to hold it back as the bile reached his throat. As he sat up, his hands came in contact with something sticky and cold and Harry realized that he had vomited already, but quite a while ago from the looks of it.  
  
Last night had been one of the worst nights of his life and this morning was shaping up to be one of the worst. His throat was scratchy and dry from the screaming and heaving the previous evening and his muscles were cramped and twisted from his withering around on the couch. Glancing at the clock, he noticed it was only four in the morning so, picking himself up, he staggered over to the kitchen and poured himself some water in a goblet he had found after rummaging through Snape's cupboard. As he gulped it greedily, a door to his right swung open revealing a haggard Snape who was still dressed in his black dirt-smudged robes. He only looked slightly surprised to see his second cousin in his kitchen.  
  
"Rough night?" Harry asked with a smirk as Snape groaned and grabbed a potion from his cabinet and tossed Harry one.  
  
"I've had better. I'm guessing you felt it?" He asked while Harry stared at his potion. "Anti-nausea potion." He explained. Harry smiled and knocked it back before tossing the vial to Snape who left it on top of a shelf.  
  
"Don't know how much I need it." Harry admitted as he looked over to where he had been sleeping. "I sort of threw up on your carpet." He muttered embarrassedly while Snape groaned and slapped his forehead with his hand.  
  
"Why can't I just have teenagers in my life where the only time this occurs is when they're drunk?" He whipped his wand out and directed a cleaning spell over the area and in the next moment, it was as good as new.  
  
"Sorry. Guess you're stuck with having diviners, empaths, weird hybrids and Voldemort's moving target." Harry shrugged and went searching through Snape's fridge and pantry.  
  
"Just make yourself at home." Snape said sarcastically and Harry waved his thanks with his head still in the pantry looking for food other than potion ingredients. "I swear children are like locusts. They steal all your time, your food………" He trailed off when he noticed Harry munching on a piece of fruit. Snape waited till Harry's mouth was full before he continued. "So, are you ever going to tell Dumbledore about that mark on your arm?" He asked nonchalantly and just as he expected, that piece of apple flew from his small open kitchen to his living room. "Really, Potter, if you're just going to make a mess………" He sighed and waved the apple to the trash.  
  
"How'd you know?" Harry gasped out.  
  
Snape tsked and grabbed an apple for himself. "Don't you know the 'no secret rule' in our family?" Harry nodded. "Well there you go. Besides, Voldemort likes to brag about his latest conquests. You've become the new 'Death Eater whore.'" Harry's eyes widened and Snape crackled evilly.  
  
Harry rolled his eyes at the laugh. "And to think, I was beginning to believe that you weren't a nasty bastard." Snape chuckled again.  
  
"Seriously, Harry. None of your friends would care; it's not like you accepted it willingly. You were exhausted and had a powerful wizard burn it into your arm. I don't think anyone and I know no one in our family will think any differently of you." He said and then left towards his room, claiming the shower first.   
  
"That's okay!" Harry yelled towards his cousin's retreating back. "I need to get home anyway. They're probably wondering what happened to me." Snape gave a noise of affirmation and Harry polished off his apple before tossing it in the garbage. He floo-ed back to the Granger home and realized that it might not be a good idea to show up at nearly five in the morning. He walked through the house and back to his room when he noticed that a few lights were left on, which was strange with it only be four in the morning.   
  
He walked into his room and found everything as it should be, but to be safe he went and checked Allie's room finding both girls asleep over the covers in their clothes from last night.  
  
The door creaked open slowly and Andrea snapped open her eyes and motioned for Harry to come over. "Hey. How was it?" She asked softly.  
  
"Hell." He replied and she nodded sympathetically when she saw the bags under his eyes and the worn out way he carried himself. She then spotted the bruise under his temple and slid out of bed to grab a potion.  
  
"When'd you get back?" She whispered while rubbing the healing potion on the bruise.  
  
"Just now. Do you have the feeling something strange is going on here?" Harry asked distantly as he tried to figure out what it was. He then noticed Andrea wringing her hands together nervously on the bed. "What do you know?"  
  
"Well, Allie and I figured that they wouldn't let you go without a reasonable explanation and we didn't know what to say, so we sort of……….drugged them."  
  
"You wh-" He cried in outrage but was stopped when she placed a hand over his mouth.  
  
"Quiet." She gestured towards Allie with her free hand. "Just follow me." He glared at her but obligingly got up and followed her towards Mr. and Mrs. Granger's room. They peaked in and if Harry hadn't been so angry with her, he would have found the whole scene amusing. There the seven of them lay sleeping on a king size bed sprawled in all different positions with handcuffs attached to both of their wrists and sometimes ankles, connecting them to other people's various limbs or the posts of the bed.  
  
"Great." He said as he threw his hands up in the great. "This is just great. I can't believe you kidnapped my friends and handcuffed them to a bed." He then stood up a little straighter. "Do I even want to know where you got those handcuffs?"  
  
"Draco's a kinky little bastard." She said slyly and then laughed when she saw Harry's expression. "Just kidding. I got them from my brother; they're magically enhanced to restrain all types of creatures. Anyway, this is not the real problem."  
  
"What is the problem?"  
  
"How are we going to get them back to their own houses?" She said as she looked around.  
  
"Put Ron in my room, the twins in the extra guest room, and Hermione in her own room with Ginny. We can make up an excuse later." He said as he tried to figure out how to unlock the handcuffs. Andrea showed him and together they dragged an unconscious Ron to Harry's room and deposited him on the bed. "One down, four to go." He groaned.  
  
"It's too early!" Andrea complained as she fell on the bed, not waking Ron up even though he bounced about half a foot.  
  
"What did you give him?" Harry asked incredulously as he poked Ron harshly and received no response.  
  
"A powerful sleeping draught. The sixth most powerful in the world to be exact." She commented as they grabbed Fred and dragged him to the guest room. They finally completed their task at half past five and together they fell onto Andrea's bed.  
  
"Too tired. Can't move." Harry mumbled into her pillow.  
  
Andrea shrugged indifferently. "Stay if you want because I'm not going to haul you to bed."  
  
"Okay. Sleep good." He muttered as he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.  
  
********** 


	20. Gaining Control

Okay, because I have two fantastic readers who have both e-mailed me to get me to get off my butt, and have been ever so nice, I have updated. And while most of you are probably like, why didn't she update before? I have a good reason. Unfortunately the sequel I was planning, and had gotten like 250 pages done on, was deleted. All of it. So even though I've restarted it, it's moving really slowly. Sorry about the wait, but like I told the other two, it's hard to retype all of it. Thanks for being with me so long, I don't really want to lose any readers and I'm hoping that you'll continue to stick with it, because even though it's been really slow moving, I am determined to finish it-eventually. Thanks and please keep reading and reviewing!  
  
Harry woke up the next day with the sun shining in his face and an empty bed and room. During his sleep, all of their things had been removed and it was like they had never been there. Briefly Harry thought they might have been arrested for kidnapping but doubted he would have slept through that. He put a hand down on the side table to prop himself up and came in contact with a thick envelope. Curiously, he tore it open and dumped the contents into his hand.  
  
A letter, a filled glass vial on a string and a silver ring with a red stone in the middle. He unfolded the letter in hopes that it would reveal what purpose the odd jewelry had.  
  
Dear Harry,  
  
You're probably wondering where we are. Well, Allie went to California again for the same reason we did last time and I'm going to help out with the dream-weaver at the Council HQ. We probably won't be back until September first so I assume we'll see you on the holidays if you choose to come home with us.  
  
Anyway, we suppose you're wondering what the necklace and jewelry are for. Do you remember what father said about blood relatives having to be close to you? Don't panic! Even though we're in America, you still have our protection because during our research, we found that it is not so much of a blood relative as the blood of a relative, which is what is in the vials. The vial has my blood in it. This is Andrea if you're wondering.  
  
And the blood in the ring is mine. Allie now. And as an added bonus, the ring has some magical qualities. For further information, check your level five-potion book in the section of Human/Humanoid Blood Properties. That's all for now, but we'll write you later and send you presents from Cali.  
  
Love,  
Andrea and Allie.  
  
Harry's brow furrowed as he walked over to his trunk intent on pulling out his potion book. However, the door swung open revealing a sleep rumpled Ron who rubbed his eyes tiredly and motioned for Harry to follow him downstairs.  
  
"Hey, mate. Sleep well?" Harry nodded with confusion. "That's good. You know I had the strangest dream about you." He began and Harry's eyes widened. They didn't remember that the events were real. This was both beneficial and deleterious to the innocence of the twins and himself. If they thought it a dream, no one would question where he had gone or threaten to hunt down Andrea and Allie. On the other hand, if they began comparing their dreams, no doubt that they were the same, they would be able to piece together last night and interrogate him. He ran a hand through his messy hair that fell all over his face and followed his best friend into the kitchen where everyone else was sitting.  
  
"Morning." Harry grunted and was met with a chorus of hellos.  
  
"Try afternoon." Hermione said. "It seems we all slept late so we're just having breakfast at 2:30."  
  
"Hey, what happened to those two girls?" Fred said after a moment of silence.  
  
"Yeah." George agreed as he put down the fork he was eating his pancakes with.  
  
"Um............" Harry began as he picked at the food that was placed on his plate.  
  
Ron jumped in next. "Harry, why were you in their room? I couldn't find you so I thought you might have been with the girls and there you were." He said happily as he speared a sausage.  
  
"Right, well, they left." Harry said lamely. "And I was there because I was looking for them and that's when you found me." He said and everyone nodded. Harry gave himself an internal slap on the back for that logical lie.  
  
"Oh. Did they say why they left?" Hermione asked. She didn't really care for the twins but it was obvious that they were close friends of Harry's.  
  
Harry shrugged. "Just some business they had to take care of." He then turned to the side and started up a conversation about Quidditch with the Weasley boys and surprising Mr. Granger who was eager to learn about this new sport. The girls just rolled their eyes and continued eating with a quiet conversation.  
  
After his summer of leaving after staying for only a few days, Harry was relieved to finally find a place to be comfortable for a long period of time. And with the necklace and ring, he might be able to visit Ron in the Burrow. It had definitely been a long time since he was able to have these meaningless talks with Ron and his brothers and Harry missed them dearly. He had spent the whole summer talking to Dorothy about his grief over Cedric, but the retired Auror convinced him he was blameless as she herself often had had missions where she had to leave someone behind or accidentally led her troops into a trap.  
  
Harry hadn't known Cedric well when he died; sure, the boy was smart, kind and handsome but other than that, they had never spoken before. Cedric hadn't risked his life for Harry; he risked his glory of winning. What Harry needed to do was to stop placing the deceased Hufflepuff as the selfless martyr and instead give him the position of the kind-hearted student who valued teamwork and friendship over victory. Not everyone who had died with a connection with him had died because of him, a fact he was having a hard time getting over.  
  
But he had known Dorothy. It made the pain of loosing someone even worse, but he knew the old witch had made her own decisions and would have defended him in any way she could have, with or without his consent. Harry also knew that he would have done the same for her.  
  
Harry then felt a prodding on his arm and he turned to see Ron who was standing up. "Harry? Are you going to get up or are you just going to sit there?" His friend added with a laugh. Harry looked up to see that everyone had already left and he let out a small chuckle.  
  
"Yeah. Sorry, I was just caught in my thoughts." He got up and jogged up the steps to his room, but not before making a quick stop in the twins' old room and grabbing the letter, ring and necklace. Then, once in his room, he dug through his truck and pulled out this year's potion book. Flipping to the Table of Contents, he found the Human/ Humanoid section and quickly found the page speaking about it. He skimmed through the sections of centaurs, merpeople, veela's and elves until he found the section on empaths.  
  
'Blood of Empathy: This rare blood is carried only by empaths as the name suggests. The blood is normal in all appearances, but possess strong magical properties. When seen alone, the blood had the ability to change colors to reflect the emotions in the air and often times when left in a room with too many people in an open container, the blood will begin to change colors rapidly before disappearing. In history, the blood was often used to test the faithfulness of the love of a spouse or lover by having it place near the test subject. At one time, it was even used as means of decorating by the wealthy because of its constant color change. However, the blood collected for the decorating was in such high demand that in order to obtain the largest amount, many empaths were bled to death. Now, it is collected in a more peaceful fashion and primarily used in small amounts in potions for testing emotions and even in certain forms of truth potions.'  
  
Harry closed the book and stowed it in his trunk. Picking up the ring, he smiled and thought it to be the muggle equivalent of a mood ring. He slipped it on his finger and watched it turn a light blue. He had no idea what light blue meant but figured it was nothing bad as he was feeling content right now. The door creaked open and Harry turned to see Ron and Hermione step it.  
  
"Hey." He called out as he slipped the necklace under his pillow thinking that his friends wouldn't react well to seeing bottled blood. "All right?"  
  
"We're fine." Hermione assured as she perched herself on the bed and shot a pleading look towards Ron.  
  
"Well, Ginny, Fred and George have already left, but before I go we wanted to talk to you about something because we didn't want to wait until the next time we see each other." Harry smiled at his nervousness.  
  
"By the way this summer has been going, it might not be until school." Hermione added.  
  
Harry nodded and briefly considered using his telepathy to figure out what was going on, but changed his mind when he assumed it would be about his two best friends who were now in a relationship. "What did you want to talk about?" He asked as he joined Hermione on the bed.  
  
"Well, as you know Harry," Hermione began in her calm and collected tone, but he could see that she was wringing her hands nervously, "Ron and I are now together so things are going to be different."  
  
"Don't worry about it." Harry assured them, knowing where this is going. "I know you two will want to spend more time together and that's fine. I do have other friends." He added wryly.  
  
"We know that." Hermione said quickly.  
  
"Yeah. But if we start ignoring you, you can speak up." Ron said as he ran a hand through his hair.  
  
Harry's mouth quirked into a small grin. "Don't worry. I'll be fine. Just, if you guys get into a fight, don't put me in the middle?" He asked imploringly.  
  
Both of his best friends laughed. "Of course Harry. We're not trying to make you into our relationship councilor."  
  
"That's good." Harry said with a chuckle.  
  
"Oh, by the way Harry," Hermione began, "I remember something in your letter you sent us in the hospital about us beginning a research project."  
  
Ron rolled his eyes. "Of course she remembers that."  
  
Harry was about to laugh at Ron but remembered the importance of what they needed to find out. "Well, apparently there's a prophecy. Don't roll your eyes Hermione." The young woman blushed, as that was what she was planning to do. "This is a real prophecy and apparently it concerns me and Voldemort. Possible you two as well." He added as an afterthought.  
  
"Are you sure Harry? I mean, from what I've gathered from Divination class, that branch of magic is based on guess work and bluffing." Hermione asked hesitantly.  
  
Harry shook his head. "No, this is real and it's going to happen. Besides, divination isn't all fake." At his friends' skeptical looks he held up his hands in defense. "No really. I met a couple of diviners."  
  
"Seriously, Harry?" Ron asked.  
  
"Seriously Ron. Now if we don't have any more questions, I think I'm going to take a shower." He said as he grabbed a towel and threw it over his shoulder. "See you later Ron. Is that invitation for the Burrow still there?"  
  
The redhead's smile grew. "It always is. Won't Dumbledore have a problem with it, though?"  
  
"No. It'll be fine." He called as he disappeared through the door.  
  
Hermione's voice called out to him before he reached the bathroom. "Make it quick Harry. My cousins are going to be here soon."  
  
"Okay!" He yelled as he hopped into the shower. Ten minutes later he was dressed and running downstairs as he pulled his towel-dried hair up into a ponytail at the nape of his neck.  
  
"There you are!" Hermione said as she grabbed his hand and pulled him into the living room where her parents and two other people were waiting. "Harry, these are my cousins, Leila and William." They said their hellos politely.  
  
"Harry, we were just about to go for a walk. Would you like to come?" Mrs. Granger asked as her, her husband and her niece and nephew were heading out the door.  
  
"Sure." Hermione grabbed the inside of his arm and then froze, as did Harry. She had come in contact with a bit of raised skin, scars from mutilation at that he did with his own hand this summer.  
  
She gasped and dragged him near the stairwell. "Harry." She breathed as she turned his arm over. She could see the small white scars from the minor cuts but she could feel the ragged skin where the skin had grown together after a deeper cut. "What did you do to yourself?"  
  
"Its nothing. I was just hurt." He said as he yanked his hand away.  
  
She shook her head. "No. Leila's a psychiatrist and I've read some of her books. These are self-mutilation scars." She shook her head sadly. "Why'd you do it Harry?"  
  
"I told you Hermione. It's nothing. It's over. I'm not going to hurt myself anymore." He tried a small smile. "I'm better now."  
  
"Why didn't you tell us?" Her voice was a little more than a whisper and he could see tears clouding her eyes.  
  
"There's nothing to tell."  
  
"Oh yes there is. We need to get you help. I should owl Dumbledore." She said in a hurry as she turned to go up the steps. Harry's arm stopped her.  
  
"No, you will not owl Dumbledore." He said in a quiet voice that had a dangerous edge, the same voice that he had used at the pool, the voice that had frightened Hermione. "Just forget you ever saw them."  
  
He turned to follow her parents but Hermione's shrill voice stopped him. "I will not! You are my friend Harry."  
  
"Just forget about it." He growled through clenched teeth. Harry had already dealt with this with Dorothy who understood the need to hurt oneself or to feel such guilt to drive someone to do it. He didn't need to listen to a schoolgirl who had read one to many books and dubbed herself an expert. She would never understand, Harry thought bitterly.  
  
"NO!"  
  
"Hermione-" He was beginning to get frustrated with her.  
  
"No, Harry! I am going to owl-"  
  
"No you won't!" He was practically yelling now and so was Hermione.  
  
"Yes, I will! You need help."  
  
"What I need is for you to just let it go!"  
  
"No!"  
  
"JUST FORGET ABOUT IT, HERMIONE!" He screamed and closed his eyes trying to push all the anger away. He opened them again when Hermione hadn't said anything in a while. Figuring he scared her, he prepared to apologize. "Herm, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have-" He stopped when he noticed Hermione's expression. Her eyes were glazed over and she was swaying slightly as she stood. He waved a hand in front of her eyes. "Hermione?"  
  
That snapped her out of it, but it was strange. Her bright smile was on her face and she looked eager. "There you are, Harry! I want you to meet my cousins Leila and William." She looked around the room for a moment. "Where'd they go?"  
  
"Er, Hermione? I already met your cousins. Don't you remember?" He asked quietly. Then a thought ran through his head.  
  
Just forget about it, Hermione  
  
God, he thought, please don't let me have memory charm my best friend.  
  
"No, because you haven't met them yet. Are you okay Harry?" She asked gently.  
  
"Fine." He mumbled. "Your cousins are outside. They're going for a walk. Tell your parents I'm going to stay here." He said distractedly as he tried to figure out what to do. Hermione nodded, slightly confused by his actions today. As she headed towards the door, Harry ran upstairs to his room and began throwing all of his things back into his trunk. A voice from the bed startled him in the middle of his frantic packing.  
  
"Hello Harry." He turned around with his wand out and noticed the graceful black woman from the council. Once again, she was wearing green robes.  
  
"Hi." He said nervously as he put his wand away. "Kali, right?" She nodded. "What are you doing here?"  
  
"I'm here to help you."  
  
Harry groaned. "Don't say you want to help me. Last time someone wanted to help me, they got memory charmed." He said feeling more that a little bit guilty. The only things that eased this were that it was only a small amount of time lost in her memory and it was only an accident.  
  
"Yes I know. But I want to make you an offer." She waited and Harry gestured for her to go ahead. "As you know, the Diviners Council is open to all who possess unique gifts in the field. In many ways, we're like a boarding school."  
  
"No way." Harry said. "I'm not leaving Hogwarts."  
  
"We're not asking you to." She replied calmly. "What would happen is that for the rest of the summer, you would receive training from different telepaths. You would receive your own room and receive meals with us. We do grant you permission to leave if that is what you wish."  
  
Everything she had said so far sounded like a pretty good deal and he was finding few reasons to decline it. Harry knew that if he didn't take this opportunity, something like downstairs could happen to one of his friends, maybe even worse than this time. He didn't want to take that risk. "Okay. What exactly in the training?"  
  
She smiled widely at his acceptance. "Mediation is always an important part of our society. Everyday at seven in the morning and then seven at night, we have our meditation sessions. Once you are able to do this successfully, we'll begin your mental barriers. That's probably all we'll have time for."  
  
Harry nodded his head. "Will Andrea be there?"  
  
"No." She said sadly. "The dream-weaver is still on the loose so we've sent every mystic, seer, psychic, medium, and prophecy layer to another one of our bases. Some are in America, some are in France or Spain. A few have families that they are with right now. We don't want the dream-weaver interfering with visions. So far, nine of our seers and psychics have given us incorrect information."  
  
"Right. Will it affect the telepaths?" He asked hesitantly.  
  
"Most likely no. But it is of little significance to the world if we are affected. Do not worry, Harry Potter. You'll be safe."  
  
"That's good. So I would need to stay there all summer?" She nodded.  
  
"You are free to visit with friends but for no more than five hours."  
  
"And I would need to leave now?"  
  
"Once your affairs are in order, yes."  
  
"Guess I'll just leave a note." He said as he rummaged through his trunk and pulled out a piece of parchment, a quill and a bottle of ink. "Done." He said a few minutes later and he place the parchment on his bed.  
  
"Don't forget about that vial under your pillow." She reminded him as he closed his truck.  
  
"How did-" He shook his head and smiled. "Right. Telepathic." Together they dragged his trunk downstairs and stood in front of the fireplace. Harry remembered doing this with Allie a day ago and Andrea a few days before that. Suddenly something occurred to him, something Andrea had said. "Kali, is it possible for diviners to have more than one power?" She cocked her head to the side in a silent question. "Andrea told me that I have another power. I'm not quite sure what it is yet."  
  
"Let me check." She placed her hands to his temples like she had yesterday and concentrated. "Yes, you're right."  
  
"Well, what's my other power?" He asked expectantly.  
  
"You're a fire-starter." She said with a smile. "If you'd like, we can find someone to help you manage that gift." He looked at her oddly.  
  
"But fire-starters wouldn't be diviners."  
  
"But we have many connections." She said and then turned her head as she heard voices coming from the side of the house. "Your friend is coming back so we better leave quickly." He did as she said and in less than a minute, they were standing in the familiar parlor of the Diviners Council HQ. The woman in the blue was standing with the woman in yellow and the two were speaking quietly.  
  
"Hello, Harry Potter." The woman in the blue said. "I am Cassandra and this is Abigail." She said, gesturing towards the woman in the yellow. "I see you have accepted the training." Harry nodded and she smiled. "Good. Let's get you settled in." They stepped out in the hall and Harry was surprised to see large numbers of people running up and down the hall in haste.  
  
"It isn't normally like this." Abigail said as she watched two people collide. "We're trying to get a majority of our members out before the dream-weaver strikes again. Soon it will just be the telepaths and the spiritualists." She said sadly.  
  
"Are you leaving as well, Cassandra?" Kali asked the other woman.  
  
"Yes." She replied desolately. "I hate to leave, but it is for the best. I'm heading to the German retreat." All women nodded and Harry just trailed along. He followed them down a similar corridor to the one he found last time and was ushered into an empty room that was an exact replica of the one he had broken into before. "This will be your room. You're welcome to use it whenever you'd like whether it'd be a week from now, a year or ten." Harry nodded and Cassandra then turned to open the armoire door revealing cotton white robes. "This is the uniform you will wear for the time being. It signifies that you are in training. When you graduate, you will be given green robes like Kali."  
  
"What do the colors mean anyway?" Harry asked as he sat down on the small bed, which was surprisingly comfortable.  
  
"The colors are to represent your power. That way, you don't need to find a medium if you have a spirit problem. Instead, you just look to anyone wearing red." Abigail explained.  
  
"So red is a medium. What's a medium?"  
  
"They can communicate with the dead." Cassandra explained. "Anyway, green in for telepaths, blue is for seers, yellow is for spiritualists, silver is for mystics, brown is for prophecy layers, and purple is for psychics."  
  
"Right." Harry said. "When do I get to wear green?"  
  
"When we think it fit." Kali said with a smile. "It won't be as long as you'll think."  
  
Abigail smiled at him and then looked slightly dreamy. "I remember when I first got mine. It felt like I had finally become an adult and that I had all of this power."  
  
Cassandra smiled knowingly and then proceeded towards the door. "It's about time I left. They're already beginning to leave."  
  
"I'll see you out." Abigail said and together they left. Harry looked to Kali who offered him her hand and pulled him off the bed.  
  
"I'll show you around, if you'd like." Harry nodded and allowed himself to be shown around for an hour.  
  
During the whole hour, Harry couldn't help but notice that the Council Head Quarters was a lot like Hogwarts is some respects. The building was really a castle about the same size of Hogwarts and like his school; the castle had passages that changed and doors that revealed different things behind them every time you opened one. The eating hall was larger and more elegantly sculpted with ornate flying buttress at the corners that supported a ceiling full of blue and white tiles that, to Harry, looked like just a bunch of random lines connected to each other. When he mentioned this to Kali, she laughed.  
  
"That's what I thought when I first arrived, but actually, when you look hard enough, the tiles form a labyrinth. No ones been able to solve it yet because every day, the tiles rearrange themselves. Some muggles explorers who discovered this castle built the mosaic as a representation of the twisting halls, which is how the castle gained the name 'Labyrinth Halls'."  
  
"Why can the tiles move if muggles created it?" Harry asked as he tried to trace the ceiling with his eyes but kept coming up to dead ends.  
  
"This castle was built on magical ground by wizards in the past as a way to confuse the enemies. However, once something is carved or cemented to the stone, it too has the ability to move. The poor explorers didn't understand this and tried to take the tiles off the ceiling when the pattern wouldn't stay. The castle grew angry and a month later when a servant came to work at the castle, she discovered all of the members dead."  
  
"How?" Harry asked quietly and made a note to himself not to anger this castle.  
  
"Starvation. They couldn't get out and they couldn't get to the kitchen. They just kept finding themselves in blocked corridors."  
  
"That's sad." Harry said and Kali nodded.  
  
"Yes it is."  
  
"Well how did the diviners get the castle?"  
  
"The young servant girl." Harry looked at Kali strangely. "She was a diviner and a witch. She understood the magic in the area and struck up a deal with the castle. The girl promised that her and her followers would protect and care for the castle if it did the same for the inhabitants. It agreed and here we are today."  
  
Harry nodded and they resumed walking. "Who was this girl?" He asked, wondering if he had ever heard.  
  
"Her name was Cassandra."  
  
"Not the same one I met." Harry said incredulously.  
  
Kali shook her head no. "The one you met is the descendent of the Cassandra in the story."  
  
"Family name?" He inquired as he ran his hands along the smooth walls of the corridor.  
  
"You could say that." He looked at her and waited for her to finish the story. "Cassandra comes from a long line of diviners, seers mostly. Ever hear the story of Cassandra, the Trojan seer?" Harry nodded his head. For the little he paid attention in History of Magic, he still managed to retain some information. "Well, that's where they all get the name."  
  
"From their ancestor." Harry finished and Kali nodded. "So is everyone in their family named Cassandra?"  
  
"Not the men." Kali said and Harry rolled her eyes. "Cassandra's sisters are not either."  
  
"How do they decide who to give the name?" Harry asked as they stepped out into the courtyard.  
  
"Firstly, only someone named Cassandra can give the name to their child. Cassandra's sister Susan could not name her child Cassandra. Then, usually during the nine months one of the Cassandra's is pregnant, a vision will occur and you'll know that this child deserves the name. And sometimes, the name will skip a generation and that is the only time any of Cassandra's descendents are able to give the name to their child, but only if they have a vision."  
  
"So much for one name." Harry murmured.  
  
"Yes. But the diviner, and it usually is a seer, named Cassandra becomes head of the Council."  
  
He looked shocked for a moment. "But that's not fair!"  
  
Kali smirked. "Did you not notice our password was divine right?" Harry laughed and allowed her to lead him through a grove of citrus trees. They stepped out on the path again and saw a man dressed in yellow meditating on a stone bench. Kali motioned for him to follow her and they left him in peace. "It is very important not to interrupt someone when they're meditating. Who knows where they mind might have wandered?"  
  
This was a strange concept to grasp, but Harry just nodded his head and they continued walking.  
  
"This is the meditation garden." Kali pointed out. "Usually after dinner or in the morning a majority comes here. The remaining diviners either stay in the hall or retreat to their rooms." They came to a large green hedge and Harry had to fight down the shivers as he remembered the maze for the tournament last year. Kali noticed and quickly said it was the maze before walking down a small path of stones to a koi pond. Passing through the trees, Harry saw two people locked in a passionate embrace. He blushed and Kali coughed slightly. Both smiled when the two flew apart. Kali took notice of a silver robe and a green one. "Sarah," She said gently to the one in the silver, "It's time you left. We've already begun the clear out." Sarah's eyes widened and she prepared to leave. "We'll all escort you." The four of them walked back through the gardens and to the arrival/departure room. Sarah looked slightly reluctant to go but the man in the green squeezed her hand tightly and probably began talking to her mentally.  
  
"Be safe." She said allowed and hugged him. "All of you." She added tearfully.  
  
"You as well." Kali replied and in a moment, Sarah had left.  
  
"Kali," The man in the green said, "Are we any closer to capturing the dream-weaver?"  
  
She shook her head sadly. "No. He hasn't done anything besides that act with Caleb, but we are sure it was not a one time thing."  
  
"Was it one of his enemies?" She shook her head. "Are you sure?" Another negative response. "Kali, don't let your feelings for him cloud your judgment." He started.  
  
"My feelings have nothing to do with this, Alexander. This is not happening because of Caleb." She bit out and opened the door to leave.  
  
"I hate to say it Kali, but he's the only one who's been attacked recently and lets face it, he doesn't do everything by the book. Besides, he is known work with quite a few of the more infamous weavers. He might have angered one or even picked up their traits himself." He said slyly.  
  
She turned around and clenched her hands into fists. "And now you're accusing him? I know you're upset about everyone leaving, especially Sarah, so I'll cut you some slack. But don't you dare try to accuse Caleb of any of this. Don't even think it." She then stormed out of the room and stopped. Harry followed behind her and looked to see what stopped her. There stood probably all that was left of the diviners at the council in a crowd of yellow and green. All of them were staring at Kali, who in turn was only looking at one person. Harry peered around her and regarded the man.  
  
He was a tall man with light blonde hair that hung around his face. It wasn't as pale as Draco but instead was more of a honey color. He was dressed in green robes like Kali was and had a sincere smile on his face. But his eyes.........his eyes were chilled blue and seemed to haunt you. Harry didn't trust this man.  
  
"What's with all the yelling?" He asked gently.  
  
"It's none of your concern." Kali bit off and stormed down the hallway leaving Harry to trail after her and listen to the whispered speculations from the diviners. He finally caught up to her when they were nearing the halls near his room.  
  
"Kali, who was that?"  
  
"Its of no importance Harry." She sighed. "Get yourself settled in and we'll begin training tomorrow." He nodded and headed towards his room.  
  
Training with the diviners, as it turned out, was not all meditation and relaxing like Harry had assumed. In the two weeks he had been here, he couldn't remember one night where he hadn't fallen onto his bed in complete exhaustion. On his first few days they sat for hours on the dark blue mats in a grove outside. The whole process left him with stiff joints and muscles and he felt he was making little to no progress. On the fortunate side, he was receiving a tan from the whole thing. Later in the week, Kali had decided it was time to begin martial arts training. Why? Harry had no idea why these psychics would need to learn how to flip people over, a common occurrence for Harry right now. But thinking back to Andrea being held against a brick wall, he supposed that they might come in handy.  
  
As of now, he was learning the basics although he was often used as test dummy for some of the more advanced throws. Kali said his muscles needed to be built more so they then began muscle conditioning. Between all of these activities, the hour meditations that everyone followed and the meals of vegetables and fruits, his energy was depleted.  
  
So now he was lying on his bed, hoping that Kali wouldn't find him and drag him off to another practice.  
  
No such luck.  
  
A knock on the door sounded and Harry groaned as a type of permission to enter. It was Kali like he had thought only instead of holding some type of weapon or such, she was holding a tan canvas bag.  
  
"Are you going somewhere?" He asked as he sat up in his bed.  
  
She nodded to him and looked up at him with sad eyes. "I'm going to the German retreat. Things have grown too hostile." She said miserably.  
  
Harry just nodded; he couldn't think of much to say. Ever since his first meeting with that strange man, whom he later learned was named Isaiah, tension had been high around the castle. Many seemed to think that after Kali's outburst that she was hiding the dream-weaver or helping it and she became the recipient of dirty looks and stares of mistrust. He didn't blame her for wanting to leave; he had felt the same way during the Chamber of Secrets fiasco.  
  
"Okay." He said quietly. "What's going to happen about my training?"  
  
"I'm turning you over to Alex. He'll probably be a better trainer anyway." He nodded and she turned to leave. "Good luck. Good-bye Harry." He waved and then flopped on his bed. For a brief time he wondered what to do.  
  
He considered sending his owl to Draco but thought better to. The blonde was obviously busy, or he gathered the impression from the one letter he had received. Truth be told, he didn't gather much out of the letter except that Draco was going to stay until the end of summer and that basically he was whoring himself out to every available elf, neither were of any surprise. Then he thought of Ron and Hermione. Sending a letter to those two were only mean more explanations he wasn't ready for. He sighed and pulled the pillow over his head. Maybe he would just sleep.  
  
The next three days he spent them training with Alex. Kali had been right about him; he was a better opponent for Harry because he was about the same size and build and not much more advanced than Harry was. It had taken only about an hour to understand his style, but other than that, everything was going fine.  
  
Of course, when Harry thought this, he should have considered Murphy's Law.  
  
On the ninth day after Kali had left, he was sitting at one of the tables in the breakfast hall eating a fruit salad. He waited for a moment after he finished because Alex was supposed to pick him up and begin training with him. But after half an hour, there was no sign of him. Or of Isaiah, he thought as he glanced around the room. He caught Abigail's eyes who was just starting on her breakfast plate and smiled at her. She returned the gesture and began eating.  
  
Finally deciding to find Alex instead of wait around, he left the hall and began walking towards the chambers. With the intended destination in mind, he walked confidently, not paying any attention to the changing walls of the Labyrinth. However, at ten minutes of walking, he realized he wasn't getting closer and instead he was in a corridor with dimmer lights and dusty floors. He felt slightly nervous and tried to calm himself. Then, reasoning that if he walked backwards he would find his way out, he proceeded to do just that.  
  
To Harry's relief the corridors grew brighter but he couldn't stop his mind from drifting to the story of the first inhabitants. He shuddered slightly and stumbled onto a dark hallway with a shape hiding in the darkness. Fearing it was the dream-weaver, Harry backed up a bit and pulled out his wand. But the shape didn't move. Cautiously, he crept closer until he saw the outline of a leg. He prodded the leg with his toe and watched as it lied there, dead. So, sucking in a breath and summoning all of his courage, he muttered the lumos spell and raised his wand high. First he saw the green robes, but there was something dark spilled on them and Harry, fearing the worst, he closed his eyes before raising the wand to reach the person's face.  
  
When he did, his eyes widened and he felt the bile rise in his throat. He turned around and heaved all of the contents of his stomach out until he could only dry retch. Harry backed up against the wall, not caring that he was probably sitting in his vomit, and held his head in his hands. The image was burned onto his eyelids forever and not even looking Voldemort in the eye had ever been this frightening. Placing a hand down to hoist himself up, he came into contact with some sliver of material. Whatever it was, it had a moist feeling to it with a light fluff of hair dusting the surface. His eyes widened and he snatched his hand away and tried to run into another corner.  
  
Then wondering if perhaps it had been the dream-weaver, Harry raised his wand again and let it cast its rays into the corner. He snatched it back quickly when the image was the same.  
  
Because there, lying in the corner like a rag doll, lay Alex with brown eyes wide and still. Blood still dripped down his robe and was now beginning to make puddles on the floor now that there was no skin to hold any of it in. Someone or something had skinned his teacher, leaving all muscles in tack and glistening with dropping blood that fell down his bare cheek like tears. Over in the corner were strips of the protective covering, the skin. It had been shredded off and looked like it had been gnawned on.  
  
Standing shakily, Harry managed to run back down the corridor that he came from with hot tears streaming down his face. He came to a dead end and pounded his fist into it in frustration, ignoring the sharp crack and the blood that fell down his hand steadily. Harry put his arm against the wall and rested his head against it and cried. The death of Alex was my fault, he thought bitterly, if he hadn't been my teacher, he would have been fine. He remembered Sarah and slumped to the floor in frustration; he had ruined so many lives. What would Sarah think when she found her boyfriend dead and realized it was his fault? Going against what Dorothy and the twins and even Draco had told him, he began to blame himself for everything he thought he could put past him. Falling to the floor, he cried until his eyes began to burn and he fell asleep.  
  
When he woke up hours later, the hallways were still dimly lit from the few torches scattered on the wall. There were no windows in this part of the castle but he could feel that it was at least late evening. He stretched tiredly and rubbed his legs that had gained cramps from the odd position they had been in. Finally standing up, he grabbed a torch and waved it in front of him in the direction he had first arrived. Of course he could have used his wand, but the hand he had punched the wall with, which was now purple, stiff and covered in dried blood, was his wand hand. It throbbed painfully but he ignored it and instead gasped in surprise as he stared across from him.  
  
It seemed that in the hours he slept, the walls had decided to move again and now one was blocking his way. He approached it slowly and ran his hands over the rough stones and the mortar to try and find any type of door to get him out of this closed off space.  
  
"Shit." He mumbled as he found no opening and then left that wall to search another. Once again, that story Kali had told him came to mind and he desperately hoped that he would have better luck than those muggles. After thoroughly searching for an hour, the torch was beginning to burn down and he still had found no exit to the small room he found himself in. Sighing, he placed the torch back on its holder that was attached to the wall and curled up on a corner to wait for the walls to shift again. His stomach growled loudly as he hadn't eaten anything all day, unless you counted the breakfast he had thrown up. But that food was doing him no good now since it was now lying in another part of the castle.  
  
So he waited. 


End file.
